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Global private banking, wealth head Annabel Spring to
leave
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Gabriel Castello to be interim CEO for global private
banking
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CEO Elhedery aims to streamline bank, improve
decision-making
(Recasts, adds details throughout, analyst comment, share price
performance)
By Selena Li, Lawrence White and Sinead Cruise
HONG KONG/LONDON, Dec 5 (Reuters) - HSBC ( HSBC )
announced a raft of senior management departures and
appointments on Thursday, as CEO Georges Elhedery completed the
first phase of a sweeping overhaul aimed at streamlining costs
and improving decision making.
Global Private Banking and Wealth head Annabel Spring was
among the most senior newly-announced departures, according to a
company release. She will be replaced by Gabriel Castello as
interim CEO for global private banking, starting Jan. 1.
Former Morgan Stanley ( MS ) and Barclays ( JJCTF ) investment banker Matthew
Ginsburg will also leave the bank, it said.
HSBC ( HSBC ) in October unveiled a plan to merge some operations and
split its geographic footprint into East and West, and remove
duplicate roles as it focuses on Asia to try to cap costs and
bolster income.
The revamp, one of the largest in years for the
London-headquartered bank, has seen a steady flow of senior
managers depart in recent weeks as Elhedery sought to create a
simpler and more dynamic organisation.
"We have now completed the next stage of these important
changes, which will help us fast forward our plans to execute
our strategic priorities," Elhedery said in a separate release.
The bank also promoted Lisa McGeough to become its president
and CEO for the United States, its first female CEO in the
region for more than a decade.
McGeough, who currently serves as co-head of global banking
coverage, will drive the expansion of HSBC's ( HSBC ) wholesale business
in the U.S., the bank said.
Her predecessor, Michael Roberts, was recently elevated to
CEO of the newly-merged corporate and institutional banking
business and will relocate to London.
Among the more high profile exits in recent weeks was chief
sustainability officer Celine Herweijer, who stepped down weeks
after a previous stage of Elhedery's reshuffle removed her role
from the lender's executive committee.
"I don't think there will ever truly be an end to the
shuffling and churning at an organisation as large as HSBC ( HSBC ), but
one would hope the pace slows and allows some stability for the
workforce," Shore Capital analyst Gary Greenwood told Reuters.
"This should then allow the business to grow and develop
which, in turn, should be positive for shareholders if the
changes that have been made were effective," he added.
HSBC's ( HSBC ) shares have risen 20% this year as it reported robust
earnings despite falling interest rates, outperforming Britain's
wider FTSE 100 index which has risen nearly 8%.