HSBC Holdings PLC (LSE:HSBA)’s acquisition of the UK arm of Silicon Valley Bank was a lucrative one if today’s first-quarter earnings call is anything to go by.
the banking giant wrote up a £1.2bn profit boost from the takeover, which was executed for a total of one quid after the Californian lender to the tech world went bust in March.
The Bank of England brokered the deal in order to prevent wider turmoil in the financial sector and to protect customer deposits.
In prosaic terms, chief executive Noel Quinn called the SVB UK takeover a “wise financial deal”, telling Bloomberg of the SVB UK’s global potential.
Quinn said that HSBC intends to keep SVB UK as a distinct unit within the machine, noting that the bank had “done a very good job”.
“But also I want to take that capability globally… I’m also setting up teams in other parts of the world that are the equivalents of SVB in the UK.
“So we bought a business in the UK, but I want to create that capability globally,” he said.
HSBC may be eyeing up expansion plans in Asia’s tech hubs, Given the lender’s significant footprint on the continent.
Such is the value of HSBC’s Asian operations that major shareholder Ping An, the Chinese insurance firm, is pressuring the lender to spin out its Asia business in order to enhance value for the continent’s stakeholders.
Quinn did not disclose any further details on HSBC’s plans for SVB UK.
HSBC shares were up nearly 6% on the numbers.