28th Nov 2005 09:06
HSBC Holdings PLC28 November 2005 APPOINTMENTS Sir John Bond, 64, Group Chairman of HSBC Holdings plc since 1998, will retireat the Annual General Meeting on 26 May 2006, after 45 years service. Sir John will be succeeded as Group Chairman by Stephen Green, 57, who joinedHSBC in 1982, and is currently Group Chief Executive. Stephen Green will be succeeded as Group Chief Executive by Michael Geoghegan,52, who joined HSBC in 1973 and is currently Chief Executive of HSBC Bank plc,the Group's principal subsidiary in the UK. These appointments have the unanimous support of the Directors and have beenmade after consultation with representatives of major institutional investorsand explanation of the succession planning and independent external searchprocess. Michael Geoghegan will be succeeded as Chief Executive of HSBC Bank plc, subjectto necessary approvals, by Dyfrig John, 55, who joined HSBC in 1971 and iscurrently the bank's Deputy Chief Executive. There are no matters that need to be brought to the attention of shareholders. Media enquiries to Michael Broadbent on +44 (0)20 7991 8980 or [email protected] or Richard Lindsay on +44 (0)20 7992 1555 or [email protected] Notes to editors: 1. BiographiesBiographies of Sir John Bond, Stephen Green, Michael Geoghegan and Dyfrig Johncan be obtained from Richard Lindsay on +44 (0)20 7992 1555 [email protected]. 2. Letter to shareholdersThe following letter will be sent to all HSBC shareholders by Sir Brian Moffat,Chairman of the Nomination Committee: Dear Shareholder Today, HSBC Holdings plc announced that Sir John Bond will retire at the AnnualGeneral Meeting on 26 May 2006. Sir John's successor as Group Chairman will beStephen Green, currently Group Chief Executive. The decision by the Board to appoint Stephen Green as Group Chairman, was madeafter a thorough selection process. This was conducted by the NominationCommittee, assisted by external advisers, and included extensive benchmarkingagainst external candidates. We considered carefully the requirements of theposition in terms of HSBC's size, geographical spread and complexity. Werecognised the need for full time executive commitment and experience ofinternational banking at the highest level. We took account of the need for theGroup Chairman to have a wide range of skills, the capacity for strategicthinking and the ability to sustain and enhance the company's corporatecharacter. We also took into consideration the need for the Group Chairman to beable to work closely and effectively with the Group Chief Executive, to have theauthority to run the Board and to have the personal standing to represent HSBCexternally at the highest level. Job specifications for the Group Chairman andthe Group Chief Executive, setting out their respective authorities andresponsibilities, have been agreed by the Board. The Nomination Committee cameto the unanimous conclusion that Stephen Green was the outstanding candidate. Stephen joined HSBC in 1982. He was Group Treasurer from 1992 to 1998, andExecutive Director, Corporate, Investment Banking and Markets from 1998 to 2003when he was appointed to his current position. Stephen has worked in Hong Kong,New York and London, and has immense international experience and knowledge ofyour company. He is superbly well qualified to serve as your Chairman. Stephen's successor, as Group Chief Executive, will be Michael Geoghegan, whocurrently leads HSBC Bank plc, the Group's principal subsidiary in the UnitedKingdom. Michael too is highly qualified for his new position and hisappointment also has the unanimous support of your Directors. He has 32 yearsexperience with HSBC and has worked in 10 countries in North and South America,Asia, the Middle East and Europe. Nowadays, success in financial services depends in a large measure on therelative strengths of competing management teams. HSBC's record suggests thatits management team is second to none. Planning management succession is key tothis, has long been established in the Group and the plan is regularly reviewedby the non-executive Directors. Furthermore, HSBC is a remarkable organisationwith a distinctive character and culture. The business is managed throughinternational teamwork and HSBC believes this is best achieved by managementcontinuity and amongst colleagues who have similar values. By way of example,the top fifty executives have a combined service approaching 1,000 years withHSBC, although 20 per cent of these executives have joined the Group in the lastsix years thus ensuring there is a balance of new talent to help run thebusiness. Your Directors believe strongly that the appointments announced today are in thebest interests of the shareholders. The appointments have the unanimous supportof the Directors and have been made after consulting with representatives ofmajor institutional investors and explaining the succession planning andindependent external search process. Yours sincerely Sir Brian MoffatDeputy Chairman andSenior Independent Non-executive Director 3. HSBC Holdings plcHSBC Holdings plc is headquartered in the UK. The HSBC Group serves over 110million customers worldwide from more than 9,700 offices in 77 countries andterritories in Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, the Americas, the Middle Eastand Africa. With assets of US$1,467 billion at 30 June 2005, HSBC is one of theworld's largest banking and financial services organisations. HSBC is marketedworldwide as 'the world's local bank'. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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