HSBC has opened its newest mainland private-banking branch in the sprawling Sichuan mega-city of Chengdu, becoming the first global lender with a full-service wealth management presence in western China.
It also unveiled another full-service wealth-management branch in the eastern city of Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang province and home to multinationals such as Ant Group and Alibaba. That expands its onshore private-banking coverage to six mainland cities.
HSBC’s ambitious expansion plans were first revealed by Euromoney in February, in an interview with its head of global private banking China, Jackie Mau.
The UK lender already had the largest onshore private wealth set-up of any Western lender. Its plans now include shoring up its presence in Beijing and Shanghai; bedding down its two newest branches; and expanding its reach across the Greater Bay Area (GBA) in southern China, where it has private-banking offices in Guangzhou and Shenzhen.
Then comes the next stage of its plan, as outlined earlier this year by Mau: to expand into more tier-two mainland cities China in 2023 and 2024, expanding its range of services and its product offering to a new generation of high and ultra-high net-worth clients.
