Reuters first with departure of HSBC Private Banking chief

Reuters broke news Oct 21 that the boss of HSBC’s Private Banking arm had joined the exodus of senior management from London to Hong Kong as the bank shifts strategic focus towards Asia. Bloomberg and the Daily Telegraph reported it the following day. The news marks a major strategic shift away from the bank’s London home and a new step towards moving the global headquarters to Hong Kong. The group chief executive moved to Hong Kong earlier in the year. In terms of private banking, it also marks a shift in emphasis away from its traditional European and Swiss based model towards Asia with its rapidly growing population of tycoons.