HSBC Bank

Establishment (1865)：Founded by Scottish banker Thomas Sutherland, HSBC officially opened for business in Hong Kong on March 3, 1865, and established a branch in Shanghai just one month later. With an initial capital of HK$5 million, its original mission was to provide financing and settlement services for Sino-European and Sino-Indian trade.

Early Expansion (19th Century – Early 20th Century)：Leveraging international trade and colonial networks, HSBC rapidly expanded its presence to London, San Francisco, Southeast Asia, and beyond, emerging as the leading international bank in the Far East. It was also authorized to issue Hong Kong dollars (and remains one of Hong Kong’s three note-issuing banks to this day).

Post-War Era & Globalization (1950s – 1990s)：After World War II, HSBC reconstructed its businesses in Hong Kong and Asia; acquired the British Bank of the Middle East in 1959; took a controlling stake in Hang Seng Bank in 1965; and aggressively expanded into Europe and North America in the 1980s–1990s. In 1991, it established HSBC Holdings plc and relocated its global headquarters to London.

Development in Mainland China (Since Reform and Opening-Up)：HSBC set up a representative office in Beijing in 1980, becoming one of the first foreign banks to return to Mainland China. In 2007, it established HSBC Bank (China) Company Limited, transforming into a locally incorporated foreign bank. In 2024, it completed the acquisition of Citi’s China retail wealth management business, continuing to deepen its footprint in the Chinese market.

Holding Entity：HSBC Holdings plc, registered in the UK and listed in London, with operations spanning 63 countries and regions.

Global Scale：

Approximately 211,000 employees (2026)

Serving around 39 million personal and corporate customers

Total assets of approximately US$3.23 trillion (2025)

Ranked 56th on the 2025 Fortune Global 500 list

Core Positioning："The World’s Local Bank" — with Asia as its profit core (contributing over 58% of total revenue), connecting markets in Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, and Latin America.

Savings, deposits, credit cards, personal loans, mortgages

HSBC Premier, Global Private Banking, mutual funds, insurance, foreign exchange, investment advisory services

Financing for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and large corporates, transaction banking, cash management, trade and supply chain finance

Corporate and investment banking services, cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&A), debt and equity financing, fixed income, foreign exchange, commodities, global markets trading

Legal Entity：HSBC Bank (China) Company Limited (HSBC China), registered in 2007 with its headquarters at Shanghai IFC.

Network Coverage：The foreign bank with the largest network and widest geographical reach in Mainland China, covering approximately 50 cities with around 160 branches and sub-branches (2024).

Business Layout：

Wealth Management: High-net-worth individual (HNWI) services, cross-border asset allocation, private banking

Corporate Banking: Serving over 60% of multinational corporations in China, cross-border trade, RMB internationalization, green finance

Financial Technology: Digital RMB pilot projects, one-stop cross-border platforms, Qianhai fintech subsidiary

Strategic Investments：Historically held stakes in Bank of Communications (19.9%), Ping An Insurance, etc., deeply participating in China’s financial opening-up.

Chinese Name：Derived from the meanings of "connecting the world"(汇) and"enriching families" (丰).

Logo：The hexagon (evolved from the Chinese character "汇" representing both Hong Kong and Shanghai).

Symbol：The bronze lions ("Stephen" and "Stitt" outside HSBC’s Hong Kong headquarters), an iconic symbol of global financial stability.

A Global Systemically Important Bank (G-SIB), subject to strict regulation by authorities in the UK, Hong Kong, China, the US, and other jurisdictions.

A cross-border financial hub between Asia and Europe/North America, leading globally in trade finance, foreign exchange, and offshore RMB businesses.

A pillar of Hong Kong’s financial sector: Hong Kong’s largest registered bank, a major note-issuing bank, and the controlling shareholder of Hang Seng Bank.

A core foreign bank in the Chinese market: Leading among foreign banks in Mainland China in terms of investment scale, network coverage, and business breadth.