HSBC’s ORIGINAL NAME lends credence to its claim to enjoy a unique position in China. The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation opened in Shanghai just one month after it started business in Hong Kong, and subsequently built up an uninterrupted legacy of 140 years of business in China. Now that China is finally opening up to foreign banking competition, the job of turning that legacy into hard profits rests with Richard Yorke, HSBC’s chief executive officer for China.
“We’re the largest foreign-owned bank in China,” Yorke says. “We’re seen as very committed to China – when we invest in a country, we’re very focused on the long term, and that’s appreciated by the government here.”
Proof of that commitment is the partnership with...
