HSBC global insurance business head Moncreiffe to leave, sources say

By Selena Li and Sumeet Chatterjee

HONG KONG, Aug 12 (Reuters) - HSBC's global chief executive for insurance business, Edward Moncreiffe, is set to leave the bank after two decades with the lender, sources said, amid a broader global overhaul and a wealth push in Asia.

The departure, first reported by Reuters, comes two years after he took over the role at the Asia-focused lender in 2024.

Moncreiffe will leave soon for external opportunities, said three people with direct knowledge of the move, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter has not yet been publicly disclosed.

The bank plans to appoint as co-CEOs Kai Zhang, its Asia head of international wealth and premier banking, and Daisy Tsang, CEO of HSBC Life Hong Kong and Macau, to succeed Moncreiffe, in addition to their existing roles, one of the sources said.

A Hong Kong-based spokesperson for HSBC declined to comment. Moncreiffe, whose impending departure from HSBC has not been reported previously, did not immediately respond to Reuters request for comment.

Moncreiffe, who is based in Hong Kong will officially leave in September, said another source.

Before taking the global insurance role, Moncreiffe spent seven years as CEO of HSBC Life Hong Kong and Macau, overseeing the bank's largest insurance markets.

Operating mainly as HSBC Life, the business uses its global banking ecosystem to make and distribute comprehensive life, health, and wealth solutions.

Moncreiffe's exit comes against a company-wide, top-down drive to grow its wealth business, particularly in a pivot to Asian markets.

HSBC's insurance arm delivered first-half profit of $1.1 billion, up 38% year-on-year, accounting for 42% of the wealth division's total pretax profit of $2.6 billion.

Moncreiffe's departure is the latest in a string of senior executive exits at HSBC since group CEO Georges Elhedery launched a sweeping overhaul after taking the helm in 2024 to cut costs, trim smaller businesses and focus on wealth growth.

Recent high-profile exits include former head of banking for Europe and the Americas Gerry Keefe, who resigned in April and its cash equities trading heads, James Grafton and Steve Jobber, who left in February.

The bank's former U.S. banking chief Lisa McGeough departed last September.

BROADER STRATEGIC CHANGE

Since joining the group in 2005, Moncreiffe has held various senior leadership positions spanning life and pensions, distribution, and strategic partnerships across Europe, Latin America and Asia-Pacific.

His exit comes as HSBC navigates broader strategic restructuring across its wealth and personal banking operations, marked by a series of divestments.

Last month the bank agreed to sell its life and health insurance business in Singapore to Germany’s Allianz in a S$2.7 billion ($2.1 billion) deal.

It then offloaded its A$36 billion ($25.3 billion) Australian home and personal loan portfolio to private equity firm Blackstone.

Insurance has been a key strategic pillar in the bank's drive to expand fee-generating revenue and boost market share in wealth markets across Asia, particularly in Hong Kong, mainland China and Southeast Asia.

HSBC shares fell 4.2% last week on concerns that Beijing's move to tax offshore insurance returns will hit demand in Hong Kong, the bank's biggest market and a primary hub for mainland buyers.

(Reporting by Selena Li and Sumeet Chatterjee; Editing by Sam Holmes)