28th Jan 2005 15:40
HSBC Holdings PLC28 January 2005 HSBC HOLDINGS PLC - BOARD APPOINTMENTS John Coombe (59) and James Hughes-Hallett (55) have been appointed Directors ofHSBC Holdings plc with effect from 1 March 2005. Mr Coombe, an independent non-executive Director, has also been appointed to theGroup Audit Committee of HSBC Holdings plc with effect from 1 July 2005. He isChief Financial Officer of GlaxoSmithKline plc, a position he has held sinceDecember 2000 following Glaxo Holdings' merger with SmithKline Beecham. MrCoombe joined Glaxo Holdings as Group Financial Controller in 1986. Mr Hughes-Hallett, an independent non-executive Director, is Chairman of JohnSwire & Sons Limited. He joined the Swire Group in 1976 and, before taking uphis current role, was based in Hong Kong as Chairman of Swire Pacific Ltd,Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd and John Swire & Sons (HK) Ltd. Pursuant to Rule 16.4(a) of the Listing Rules the details of publicly quotedcompanies held currently and in the past five years are: •John Coombe is a director of GlaxoSmithKline plc and Siemens AG; and •James Hughes-Hallett is a director of Cathay Pacific Airways Limited and Swire Pacific Limited. There are no matters relating to the appointment of these directors which needto be disclosed pursuant to Rule 16.4(b) of the Listing Rules. Brief biographical details of the new directors follow. Note to editors: The HSBC Group HSBC Holdings plc is headquartered in the UK. The HSBC Group serves over 110million customers worldwide from approximately 10,000 offices in 76 countriesand territories in Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, the Americas, the MiddleEast and Africa. With assets of US$1,154 billion at 30 June 2004, HSBC is one ofthe world's largest banking and financial services organisations. HSBC ismarketed worldwide as 'the world's local bank'. John Coombe Chief Financial Officer, GlaxoSmithKline plc John Coombe is Chief Financial Officer of GlaxoSmithKline plc. He has beenappointed to the Board as an independent non-executive Director of HSBC Holdingsplc with effect from 1 March 2005, and to the Group Audit Committee with effectfrom 1 July 2005. Mr Coombe joined Glaxo Holdings as Group Financial Controller in 1986 and wasappointed to the Board in July 1992 as executive Director responsible forfinance. He subsequently assumed responsibility for investor relations.Following the merger with SmithKline Beecham in December 2000 he was appointedto the Board of GlaxoSmithKline plc as Chief Financial Officer. Mr Coombe is toretire from GlaxoSmithKline plc on 31 March 2005, when he reaches the age of 60. Mr Coombe joined the chartered accountants, Dixon Wilson & Co, in 1966 andqualified three years later. He left the firm in 1971 to take up the position ofManagement Accountant at British Oxygen Group Limited. In 1973 he joinedCharterhouse Group plc, and was subsequently appointed Group Treasurer, aposition he held until 1984 when he became Finance Manager at CharterConsolidated plc. His other business appointments include non-executive Director of theSupervisory Board of Siemens AG and a member of the Code Committee of theTakeover Panel. He has been appointed a non-executive Director of GUS plc witheffect from 1 April 2005. Until recently he was a member of the UK AccountingStandards Board. He is also a trustee of the Royal Academy of Arts where hechairs the audit committee. Mr Coombe has a degree in economics and is a Fellow of the Institute ofChartered Accountants in England and Wales and of the Association of CorporateTreasurers. He is married and has three adult daughters. In his spare time he plays golf andbridge. James W J Hughes-Hallett Chairman, John Swire & Sons Limited James Hughes-Hallett is Chairman of John Swire & Sons Limited. He has beenappointed to the Board as an independent non-executive Director of HSBC Holdingsplc with effect from 1 March 2005. Mr Hughes-Hallett joined the Swire Group in 1976. He has held various managementpositions in the group's operations in Asia and Australia. He was ManagingDirector of John Swire & Sons Pty Ltd in Australia until January 1993, when hewas transferred back to Hong Kong as director responsible for the Swire Group'sship-owning and consumer trading interests. He became Chairman of John Swire &Sons (HK) Ltd in 1999 and assumed his current position in December 2004. Mr Hughes-Hallett is a non-executive Director, and was formerly Chairman, ofCathay Pacific Airways Limited and Swire Pacific Limited. He was a non-executiveDirector of The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited from 1999until November 2004. Born in 1949, Mr Hughes-Hallett graduated from Oxford University in 1970 with adegree in English literature. He is a Fellow of the Society of CharteredAccountants in England & Wales and an Honorary Fellow of The University of HongKong. He is married with two daughters. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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