HSBC

HSBC Holdings plc is a British multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's fifth largest bank by total assets, with total assets of US$2.67 trillion. It was established in its present form in London in 1991 by the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited to act as a new group holding company. The origins of the bank lie mainly in Hong Kong and to a lesser extent in Shanghai, where branches were first opened in 1865. The HSBC name is derived from the initials of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation. The company was first formally incorporated in 1866. The company continues to see both the United Kingdom and Hong Kong as its "home markets".

HSBC has around 6,600 offices in 80 countries and territories across Africa, Asia, Oceania, Europe, North America and South America, and around 60 million customers. As of 2014, it was the world's sixth-largest public company, according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine.

HSBC (disambiguation)

HSBC can refer to:

Banking

See also

Sport

Other

HSBC Bank Canada

HSBC Bank Canada, formerly the Hongkong Bank of Canada (French: Banque HSBC Canada), is a bank in Canada that is part of British banking giant HSBC - one of the largest banking groups in the world. HSBC Canada is the seventh largest bank in Canada, with offices in every province except Prince Edward Island, and is the largest foreign-owned bank in the country. Corporate headquarters are in the financial district of Vancouver, British Columbia. HSBC Bank Canada's Institution Number (or bank number) is 016.

History

In 1979, The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation bought a Vancouver-based acceptance company that financed machinery and equipment for small companies operating in British Columbia. In 1981, The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation incorporated Hongkong Bank of Canada (HBC), in Vancouver as a chartered bank effective July 1, 1981, under the Bank Act of Canada using the acceptance company as a base for the new bank. HBC had a few retail branches primarily focused on Asian-Canadians whose primary business centred on commercial enterprises. HBC opened branches in major cities in western Canada and in Toronto and Montreal but growth was slow. HBC sought to grow by acquisition, but the first three attempts to buy an existing institution were unsuccessful. HBC acquired the assets of Bank of British Columbia on November 27, 1986, which had essentially failed. This acquisition gave HBC an additional $2.6 billion in assets and 41 branches in British Columbia and Alberta propelling it overnight from the 20th largest to 9th largest bank in Canada.