About HSBC Holdings

HSBC Holdings plc provides banking and related financial services to its customers in the United Kingdom (the U.K.) and internationally. Strategy The key elements of the company's strategy are to maintain leadership in scale markets; double-down on international connectivity; deliver seamless customer experiences; ensure resilience and security; embrace disruptive technologies and partner with innovators; and automate and simplify at scale. The company is prioritizing investments in transaction banking, wealth and international propositions, and product innovation. The company continues to reshape its portfolio through exits and bolt-on acquisitions. Global Reach The company's global businesses serve around 42 million customers worldwide through a network that covers 62 countries and territories. The company's customers range from individual savers and investors to some of the world's biggest companies, governments and international organizations. The company serves its customers through three global businesses, including Wealth and Personal Banking (WPB), Commercial Banking (CMB), and Global Banking and Markets (GBM). Wealth and Personal Banking Wealth and Personal Banking ('WPB') provides a full range of retail banking and wealth products to the company's customers from personal banking to ultra high net worth individuals. Typically, customer offerings include retail banking products, such as current and savings accounts, mortgages and personal loans, credit cards, debit cards and local and international payment services. The company also provides wealth management services, including insurance and investment products, global asset management services, investment management and private wealth solutions for customers with more sophisticated and international requirements. The company helps millions of its customers look after their day-to-day finances and manage, protect and grow their wealth. The company serves 41 million customers globally, including 6.7 million who are international, from retail customers to ultra high net worth individuals and their families. WPB continued to invest in the company's key strategic priorities of expanding its Wealth franchise, developing its transactional banking and lending capabilities, and addressing its customers' international needs. Commercial Banking Commercial Banking ('CMB') offers a broad range of products and services to serve the needs of the company's commercial customers, including small and medium-sized enterprises, mid-market enterprises and corporates. These include credit and lending, international trade and receivables finance, treasury management and liquidity solutions (payments and cash management and commercial cards), commercial insurance and investments. CMB also offers customers access to products and services offered by other global businesses, such as Global Banking and Markets, which include foreign exchange products, raising capital on debt and equity markets and advisory services. The company operates in more than 50 markets, serving around 1.3 million customers, ranging from small enterprises to large companies operating globally, including those in the new innovation economy. The company's global reach and expertise help domestic and international businesses around the world unlock their potential. The company partners with businesses around the world, supporting every stage of their growth, their international ambitions and their sustainability transitions. The company delivers value to its clients through its international network, financing strength, digital capabilities and its universal banking capabilities, including its industry leading global trade and payments solutions. Global Banking and Markets Global Banking and Markets ('GBM') provides tailored financial solutions to major government, corporate and institutional clients and private investors worldwide. The client-focused business lines deliver a full range of banking capabilities, including financing, advisory and transaction services, a markets business that provides services in credit, rates, foreign exchange, equities, money markets and securities services, and principal investment activities. The company supports multinational corporates, financial institutions and institutional clients, as well as public sector and government bodies. The company is a leader in facilitating global trade and payments, particularly into and within Asia and the Middle East, helping to enable its clients in the East and West to achieve their objectives by accessing its expertise and geographical reach. The company's product specialists deliver a comprehensive range of transaction banking, financing, capital markets and advisory, and risk management services. Regulation and Supervision The ordinary shares of HSBC Holdings are listed in London, Hong Kong, New York and Bermuda. As a result of the listing in London, the company is subject to the Listing Rules of the FCA. As a result of the listing in Hong Kong, the company is subject to The Rules Governing the Listing of Securities on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited ('HKEX'). In the U.S., where the listing is through an American Depositary Receipt Programme, shares are traded in the form of American Depositary Shares ('ADS'), which are registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ('SEC'). As a consequence of it's the U.S. listing, the company is also subject to the reporting and other requirements of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended; the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended; and the New York Stock Exchange's ('NYSE') Listed Company Manual, in each case as applied to foreign private issuers. In Bermuda, HSBC Holdings is subject to the listing rules of the Bermuda Stock Exchange applicable to companies with secondary listings. A statement of the comany's compliance with the provisions of the U.K. Corporate Governance Code issued by the Financial Reporting Council and with the Hong Kong Corporate Governance Code. The U.K. Prudential Regulation Authority ('PRA') is the company's consolidated lead regulator. HSBC Holdings is approved by, and directly responsible to the PRA for ensuring the HSBC Group meets consolidated prudential requirements. The company's other lead UK regulator, the FCA, supervises 15 of HSBC's entities in the U.K., including seven where the PRA is responsible for those entities' prudential supervision. The FCA maintains global oversight of the company's management of financial crime risk in the exercise of its wider powers under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, and through the exercise of direct supervisory powers over HSBC Holdings. In addition, and as required under relevant local laws, each operating bank, finance company and insurance operation within HSBC is regulated by relevant local regulatory authorities. The company's banking subsidiaries in the UK, such as HSBC Bank plc and HSBC UK, are 'dual-regulated' firms, subject to prudential regulation by the PRA and to conduct regulation by the FCA. Other (generally smaller, non-bank) UK-based subsidiaries are 'solo regulated' by the FCA (i.e. the FCA is responsible for both prudential and conduct regulation of those subsidiaries). HSBC Group is subject to consolidated supervision by the PRA. The company is subject to federal and state supervision and regulation in the US. Banking laws and regulations of the Federal Reserve Board (the 'FRB'), the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the 'OCC') and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the 'FDIC') (collectively, the 'US banking regulators') govern all aspects of its the U.S. business. HSBC Bank USA, N.A. ('HSBC Bank USA') is subject to direct supervision and regulation by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ('CFPB'), which has the authority to examine and take enforcement action related to compliance with the U.S. federal consumer financial laws and regulations. The company's the U.S. securities broker/dealer and investment banking operations are also subject to ongoing supervision and regulation by the Securities and Exchange Commission ('SEC'), the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and other government agencies and self-regulatory organisations under the U.S. federal and state securities laws. Similarly, the Group's U.S. commodity futures, commodity options and swaps-related and client clearing operations are subject to ongoing supervision and regulation by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission ('CFTC'), the National Futures Association and other self-regulatory organisations under U.S. federal commodities laws. Furthermore, since the company has substantial operations outside the U.S. that conduct many of their day-to-day transactions with the U.S., HSBC entities' operations outside the U.S. are also subject to the extraterritorial effects of the U.S. regulation in many respects. As a result, HSBC is overseen by various regulators and resolution authorities including its lead global regulators and resolution authority, the BoE and the PRA and a number of host regulators and resolution authorities. Examples include the European SRB, the HKMA, FRB, FDIC and OCC. These host resolution authorities have statutory resolution group powers which could be applied to subsidiaries of the HSBC Group in their jurisdictions. HSBC Holdings and its the U.S. operations are subject to supervision, regulation and examination by the FRB because HSBC Holdings is a 'bank holding company' ('BHC') under the U.S. Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as a result of its control of HSBC Bank USA, N.A (HSBC Bank USA) and HSBC Trust Company (Delaware), N.A., Wilmington, Delaware ('HTCD'). HSBC North America Holdings ('HNAH') and HSBC USA Inc., are each a 'bank holding company' and HNAH is also an intermediate holding company ('IHC') regulated by the FRB. HSBC Holdings, HNAH and HSBC USA Inc. have elected to be financial holding companies pursuant to the provisions of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and, accordingly, may affiliate with securities firms and insurance companies, and engage in other activities that are financial in nature or incidental or complementary to activities that are financial in nature. The company seeks to comply with all applicable anti-bribery and corruption laws in every market and jurisdiction in which it operates whilst focussing on the spirit of relevant laws and regulations to demonstrate HSBC's commitment to ethical behaviours and conduct as part of its environmental, social and corporate governance. The two the U.S. banks, HSBC Bank USA and HTCD, are subject to regulation and examination primarily by the OCC. HSBC Bank USA and HTCD are subject to additional regulation and supervision by the FDIC, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the FRB. Banking laws and regulations restrict many aspects of their operations and administration, including the establishment and maintenance of branch offices, capital and reserve requirements, deposits and borrowings, investment and lending activities, payment of dividends and numerous other matters. Under FRB regulations, HNAH is subject to supervisory stress testing requirements (on an every other year basis, with the next FRB supervisory stress test expected to take place in 2024) that are designed to evaluate whether a BHC has sufficient capital on a total consolidated basis to absorb losses and support operations under severely adverse economic conditions. HSBC Bank USA and HSBC Bank plc are registered as swap dealers with the CFTC and registered as SBS dealers with the SEC. Because it is a non-US dealer, HSBC Bank plc is only subject to certain of CFTC's requirements in respect of swap transactions with the U.S. persons and certain persons guaranteed by or affiliated with the U.S. persons, and only subject to certain of the SEC's requirements in respect of SBS transactions with the U.S. persons or which are arranged, negotiated, or executed by the U.S. personnel. HSBC Bank plc is also permitted to satisfy certain CFTC requirements and SEC requirements through 'substituted compliance' pursuant to relevant determinations and related relief issued by the SEC and the CFTC. Pursuant to Title VII, the U.S. prudential regulators adopted margin requirements for non-cleared swaps and SBS for prudentially regulated swap dealers and SBS dealers such as HSBC Bank USA and HSBC Bank plc. Subject to certain exceptions, the margin rules require HSBC Bank USA and HSBC Bank plc to collect and post initial and variation margin for non-cleared swaps and SBS entered into with other swap dealers and certain financial end-users. The prudential regulators' margin requirements, the parallel margin rules adopted by the CFTC and the SEC and certain non-US regulators, as well as other regulations of OTC derivatives under Title VII, have increased the costs associated with trading OTC derivatives and may adversely affect its business in such products. In 2017, HSBC Holdings and HNAH entered into a consent order with the FRB in connection with its investigation into HSBC's historical foreign exchange activities ('FX/DMA Order'), which required HSBC Holdings and HNAH to undertake certain remedial steps. On 18 August 2023, the FX/DMA Order was terminated by the FRB after it was determined by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago that HSBC was in full compliance with the order. The company is subject to regulatory stress testing in many jurisdictions. These have increased both in frequency and in the granularity of information required by supervisors. They include the programmes of the BoE, the FRB (as explained in the 'US regulation and supervision' section), the OCC, the EBA, the ECB, the HKMA and other regulators. In Europe, the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive (BRRD) establishes a framework for the recovery and resolution of EU credit institutions and investment firms. This framework applies to HSBC's operating banks in the European region, including France and Malta. In Hong Kong, the Banking Ordinance and Financial Institutions (Resolution) Ordinance sets out requirements for recovery and resolution planning. In general, each respective part of the HSBC Group is responsible for ensuring that it meets local recovery and resolution requirements where they exist, which are mainly applicable only to those regulated entities in a particular jurisdiction. History HSBC Holdings plc was founded in 1865. The company was incorporated in England in 1959.