EU 동향

 

 

 

[HSBC as a bank]

The Hong Kong Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) is a long-established bank founded in Hong Kong in 1865 and is the second largest bank in the world. Despite its name, it is a “British” company and is headquartered in London, as Hong Kong was a British colony when it was founded. The founder was Scottish too. By 2021, HSBC had $10.8 trillion in assets under custody and $4.9 trillion in assets under administration (AUA) [1]. On top of that, HSBC is the largest bank in EU by total assets, totaling $3 trillion as of Dec 2023.[2]

 

[HSBC and Chinese Capital]

 Due to HSBC’s foundation history, it sees both Hong Kong and UK as its home markets and has a dual primary listing on both countries Stock Exchange, positioning itself as a key player in facilitating capital flow between two regions. HSBC’s largest shareholder is Ping An Insurance(中國平安), 5^th largest company in China, holding over 8% of HSBC’s total shares.[3] Additionally, HSBC makes the most sales in Asia region, accounting for up to 55% of the whole sales(2022), [4] suggesting that Chinese capital’s influence must have strong influence over HSBC’s governance and strategic policies.

 

[HSBC in EU landscape]

 While HSBC’s primary market is Asia, its second-largest market is Europe, generating around 33% of its sales as of 2022[4]. HSBC’s presence in Europe is not only limited to traditional finance hubs but also extends into Central and Eastern Europe(CEE), having 19 branches across the region.[5] With this strategy, HSBC can tap into both established and emerging markets.

 Business operation wise, one of HSBC’s main services in EU markets is USD clearing services, which is essential for European businesses involved in global transactions. From this perspective, we can skew our focus toward how HSBC leverages its key role as a bridge between regions, countries and continents, utilizing its massive network of more than 200,000 employees.[6]

 Interestingly, HSBC is well noted for its strong ESG commitments. HSBC focuses on sustainable finance in Europe, closely aligning with EU climate goals and assisting European clients in transitioning to low-carbon operations. The bank has set ambitious targets for sustainable financing, committing between $750 billion ~ $1 trillion in sustainable investments by 2030.[7]