HSBC This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. For the history of the HSBC Group prior to the founding of HSBC Holdings in 1990, see The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation. HSBC Holdings plc (traditional Chinese:) is a United Kingdom-based public limited company incorporated in England in 1990, and headquartered in London since 1993.[1] As of 2009, it is both the world's largest banking group and the world's 6th largest company according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine.[3][4] Hong Kong served as the bank's headquarters until 1992 when it moved to London as a condition of completing the acquisition of Midland Bank and as the handover of Hong Kong's sovereignty approached.[5] Today, whilst no single geographical area dominates the group's earnings, Hong Kong still continues to be a significant source of its income. Recent acquisitions and expansion in China are returning HSBC to part of its roots.[6] HSBC has an enormous operational base in Asia and significant lending, investment, and insurance activities around the world. The company has a global reach and financial fundamentals matched by few other banking or financial multinationals.[7] HSBC is listed on the London, New York City, Hong Kong, Paris and Bermuda Stock Exchanges, and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index and the Hang Seng Index. History Development of the bank HSBC (originally the "Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation") was founded in 1865. HSBC Holdings was established in 1990 and became the parent company to The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation in preparation for its purchase of Midland Bank and a change of domicile for the transfer of sovereignty of Hong Kong. Shares in HSBC Holdings, which gave HSBC a substantial presence in the UK, was completed in 1992. As part of the takeover conditions for the purchase of Midland, HSBC was required to move its world headquarters from Hong Kong to London in 1993. Major acquisitions in South America started with the purchase of Banco Bamerindus of Brazil for $1bn in March 1997[8] and the acquisition of Roberts SA de Inversiones of Argentina for $600m in May 1997.[9] HSBC World Headquarters designed by Norman Foster in London, United Kingdom. In May 1999 HSBC embarked on a major acquisition in the United States with the purchase of Republic National Bank of New York for $10.3bn.[10] Expansion into Continental Europe took place in April 2000 with the acquisition of Crédit Commercial de France, a large French bank for £6.6bn.[11] In July 2001 HSBC bought Demirbank, an insolvent Turkish bank.[12] Then in August 2002 HSBC acquired Grupo Financiero Bital, SA de CV, Mexico's third largest retail bank for $1.1bn.[13] The new headquarters of HSBC Holdings at 8 Canada Square, London officially opened in April 2003.[14] Then in September 2003 HSBC bought Polski Kredyt Bank SA of Poland for $7.8m.[15] In June 2004 HSBC expanded into China buying 19.9% of the Bank of Communications of Shanghai.[16] In the United Kingdom HSBC acquired Marks & Spencer Retail Financial Services Holdings Ltd for £763m in December 2004.[17] Acquisitions in 2005 included Metris Inc, a US credit card issuer for $1.6bn in August[18] and 70.1% of Dar Es Salaam Investment Bank of Iraq in October.[19] In April 2006 HSBC bought the 90 branches in Argentina of Banca Nazionale del Lavoro for $155m.[20] In December 2007 HSBC acquired The Chinese Bank in Taiwan.[21] In May 2008 HSBC acquired IL&FS Investment, an Indian retail broking firm.[22] Subprime crisis In November 2002 HSBC expanded further in the United States. Under the chairmanship of Sir John Bond, it spent £9bn (US$15.5bn) to acquire Household Finance Corporation (HFC), a US credit card issuer and subprime lender.[23] In a 2003 cover story, The Banker noted "when banking historians look back, they may conclude that [it] was the deal of the first decade of the 21st century".[24] Under the new name of HSBC Finance, the division was the second largest subprime lender in the US.[25] In March 2009, HSBC announced that it would shut down the branch network of its HSBC Finance arm in the U.S., leading to nearly 6,000 job losses and leaving only the credit card business to continue operating.[26][27] Chairman Stephen Green stated, "HSBC has a reputation for telling it as it is. With the benefit of hindsight, this is an acquisition we wish we had not undertaken."[28]; analyst Colin Morton said, "the takeover was an absolute disaster". [27][29] Although it was at the centre of the subprime storm, the wider group has weathered the economic crisis better than other global banks. According to Bloomberg, "HSBC is one of world’s strongest banks by some measures."[30] When HM Treasury required all UK banks to increase their capital in October 2007, the group transferred £750 million to London within hours, and announced that it had just lent £4 billion to other UK banks.[31] In March 2009, it announced that it had made US$9.3bn of profit in 2008 and announced a £12.5bn (US$17.7bn; HK$138bn) rights issue to enable it to buy other banks that were struggling to survive.[32] However, uncertainty over the rights' issue's implications for institutional investors caused volatility in the Hong Kong stock market: on 9 March 2009 HSBC's share price fell 24.14%, with 12 million shares sold in the last few seconds of trading.[33] Operations Corporate profile In February 2008, HSBC was named the world's most valuable banking brand by The Banker magazine.[34][35] Not known for marked fluctuations in securities exchanges around the world relative to its rivals, HSBC is more well known in banking circles for its conservative and risk-averse approach in its business operations - a company tradition going back to the 19th century.[36] In its technical management, however, HSBC has recently suffered a series of headline-making incidents in which some customer data were allegedly leaked or simply went missing. Although the consequences turned out to be small, the embarrassing effect on the group's image did not go unnoticed.[37] As of April 2, 2008, according to Forbes magazine, HSBC was the fourth largest bank in the world in terms of assets ($2,348.98 billion), the second largest in terms of sales ($146.50 billion), the largest in terms of market value ($180.81 billion). It was also the most profitable bank in the world with $19.13 billion in net income in 2007 (compared to Citigroup's $3.62 billion and Bank of America's $14.98 billion in the same period).[38] HSBC is by far the largest bank both in the United Kingdom and in Hong Kong and prints most of Hong Kong's local currency in its own name. Since the end of 2005, HSBC has been rated the largest banking group in the world by Tier 1 capital.[39] The HSBC Group has a significant presence in each of the world's major financial markets, with the Americas, Asia Pacific and Europe each representing around one third of the business. With 8,500 offices in 86 countries, 210,000 shareholders, 330,000 staff and 128 million customers worldwide, HSBC arguably has the most international presence among the world's multinational banking giants. The HSBC Group operates as a number of local banks around the world, which explains its advertising tagline "The World's Local Bank."[40] Outlined below are countries which, in 2007, generated the top 20 profit before tax figures, with the addition of the United States as specific issues exclude that country from the top 20 for 2007.[41] For details of other group companies see Category:HSBC. Americas • HSBC Bank Argentina SA has around 150 branches throughout Argentina providing a full range of banking and financial products and services to over 1.2 million customers. • HSBC acquired The Bank of Bermuda Limited in February 2004 for US$1.3bn. Founded in 1889, Bank of Bermuda is a leading provider of fund administration, trust, custody, asset management and banking services. Since the acquisition the group has focused its global efforts in some areas of these services on the island. [42] • HSBC Bank Brasil SA is HSBC’s largest presence in South America. HSBC is now among the ten largest banks in Brazil, with more than 1,700 branches and sub-branches in 550 Brazilian cities. Palacio Avenida: The headquarters of HSBC Bank Brasil, located in Curitiba. • HSBC Bank Canada is the seventh largest bank in Canada, with offices in every province except for Prince Edward Island, and is the largest foreign-owned bank in the country. HSBC has a very strong presence in overseas Chinese communities, especially in Vancouver and Toronto[citation needed]. The bank's headquarters are located in Vancouver, British Columbia. • HSBC Chile The HSBC Group first set up operations in Chile in 1981. Presently, HSBC Bank Chile is focusing on Global Banking and Commercial Bank businesses. • Banco HSBC (Costa Rica) S.A. operates around 40 branches throughout the major cities and is the third largest bank in the country. In the summer of 2007 HSBC acquired Grupo Banistmo in Panama, the owner of Banco Banex in Costa Rica. • HSBC El Salvador, SA is the third largest banking and financial service firm in the country. • HSBC Honduras has 49 branches and is one of the largest banks in the country. HSBC acquired Banco Grupo El Ahorro Hondureño (BGA) when it acquired Banistmo in Panama. Banistmo had bought the bank in 2002, about a year after it was formed from the merger of Banco La Capitalizadora Hondureña (Bancahsa; est. 1948) and the Banco del Ahorro Hondureño. • HSBC Mexico, SA is one of Mexico’s largest banking and financial services companies with over 1,400 branches, 4,800 ATMs and 6 million customers. HSBC purchased Banco Internacional, SA known as Bital, in November 2002, rebranding it overnight in January 2004. • HSBC Panama, SA HSBC's presence in Panama dates back to 1972. In 2000, HSBC Bank USA acquired Chase Manhattan's full-service, stand-alone bank business, which includes retail and wholesale capabilities. The acquisition included 11 full-service branches: seven branches in Panama City, two branches in Colon City, one branch in David and one branch in Chitre. At the time of the acquisition, HSBC operated in Panama as a full-service branch of HSBC Bank plc, with a strong franchise in corporate business as well as five retail branches. The acquisition of Chase Manhattan's business more than doubled HSBC's assets in Panama. Then in 2006, HSBC bought Grupo Banistmo, the largest financial services company in Central America, based in Panama for $1.8bn.[43] • HSBC established HSBC Paraguay SA when it acquired Lloyds TSB Bank Paraguay in 2007. Lloyds TSB had been in Paraguay since 1920 when the Bank of London and the River Plate established a branch in Asunción. • HSBC Bank Peru S.A. In October 2006, HSBC began the first phase of its plan business in Peru, with the aim of meeting small, medium and large companies during the second half of 2007 is implemented and a network of Personal Banking initial agency in Lima that will expand gradually. • HSBC Bank USA NA and HSBC Finance Corporation represent the group’s business in the US, which has been built up via the acquisition of Marine Midland (1980), Republic National Bank (1999), Household International (2003) and Metris Companies (2005) Solstice Capital Group (2006), among others. HSBC Bank USA, headquartered in Mettawa, Illinois (as of 2009), is a full service bank, with a strong branch network in New York State but also operating nationwide. HSBC Finance Corporation focuses on selected lines of consumer lending with a branch network across the US. Asia Pacific HSBC's Hong Kong head office, also designed by Norman Foster The HSBC Global Technology Centre in Pune, India develops software for the entire HSBC group[44]. • HSBC Bank Australia Limited gained its banking licence in 1986. Today, the bank offers a full range of Personal and Commercial services via a network of branches as well as direct channels. • HSBC Bangladesh opened its first branch in 1996 and now has 10 offices there. • HSBC Bank (China) Company Limited and HSBC Rural Bank Company Limited HSBC established its Shanghai branch office on 3 April 1865 and has had a continuous presence in the city since then, except for a break during the Japanese Occupation. Until the economic reforms of the late 1970s, its activities were mainly in inward remittances and export bills, however its activities now span a wider range. HSBC has purchased stakes in various local firms, including 19% of Bank of Communications, 8% of Bank of Shanghai, 16.8% of Ping An Insurance and via its subsidiary Hang Seng Bank, 12.8% of Industrial Bank. In 1996, HSBC was one of the first foreign banks approved to conduct renminbi business in Shanghai. The bank opened a new office in Chengdu and received approval to open a branch in Pudong and upgrade its Dalian office to a branch. • HSBC first opened for business in Hong Kong on 3 March 1865. It is one of three commercial banks that issue Hong Kong dollar banknotes in the Hong Kong SAR and has the largest share by value. The Hang Seng Index for stock prices in Hong Kong is named after the Hang Seng Bank Limited, which is a subsidiary of HSBC since the 1960s. The two banks are today first and second by market share in Hong Kong. • HSBC India. In 1959 HSBC acquired The Mercantile Bank of India, London and China, established in October 1853 in Bombay. HSBC is now one of the fastest growing foreign banks in India, both in domestic banking and support operations for worldwide operations (see Group Service Centres). • HSBC opened its first Indonesian office in Batavia in 1884 to serve the sugar trade. It then expanded its operation to Surabaya in 1896. Later in 1994 HSBC upgraded its Semarang agency, which it had opened in 1878, into a full branch. HSBC twice closed its operations in Indonesia. The first closure was during World War II, though it immediately returned after the war. In the mid-1960s, the Indonesia government forced the bank to close again, but the bank received a new banking license in 1968. In October 2008, HSBC paid US$608 million to acquire 89% of Bank Ekonomi, which had 2,200 staff, 86 branches, and about US$1.8 billion in assets. The acquisition made HSBC the third largest bank in the country, and gave it a total of 190 branches in 24 cities. • HSBC opened its first office in Japan in 1866 and maintains three companies there: its banking arm, HSBC Securities Japan Limited, and HSBC Global Asset Managament.[45] • HSBC Bank Malaysia Berhad traces its history back to the opening of the first HSBC office in Penang in 1884. The bank later became an issuer of currency notes for the Malaysian government. In 1994, HSBC became the first foreign bank to incorporate locally, forming Hongkong Bank Malaysia Berhad (now HSBC Bank Malaysia Berhad). The bank today provides a full range of personal and commercial financial services. HSBC Holdings plc in London UK is set to shift a significant number of jobs from Britain to its new operational headquarters in Cyberjaya, Malaysia. HSBC operates a call centre in Cyberjaya,Malaysia, a cybercity in Malaysia. • HSBC started its operations in Pakistan in 1982. Since then it has expanded to all major cities of Pakistan and operates as a full service bank. It currently has 12 offices: four in Karachi, two each in Lahore and Islamabad, and one each in Rawalpindi, Sialkot, Multan and Faisalabad. The head-office is based in Karachi. • The HSBC Group is represented in the Philippines through The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, and its subsidiary, the locally-incorporated HSBC Savings Bank (Philippines) Inc. HSBC opened its first branch in the Philippines in Binondo in November 1875. In 1883, a second branch was opened in Iloilo to serve the growing sugar industry. In 1971, the branch in Binondo was moved to Makati City. Ten years later, in 1981, the Iloilo branch was closed and a new branch in Ortigas Center, Pasig City, was opened. • HSBC Singapore operates as a full service bank with its headquarters in Collyer Quay. It is an approved Primary Dealer in the Singapore Government Securities Market and an Approved Bond Intermediary, with over a hundred staff operating one of the largest integrated dealing rooms in Singapore. • HSBC (Sri Lanka) traces its presence there to 1 July 1892. In 1882, HSBC appointed Delmege Reid and Co., which became Delmege Forsyth and Co. Ltd., as its agent in Colombo. In 1892, after the collapse of the New Oriental Banking Corporation HSBC saw an opportunity and established a branch. • HSBC (Thailand) initially opened a branch in Bangkok in 1888, becoming the first commercial bank in the country. In 1889 HSBC issued the first banknotes in Thailand. Later, in 1905, HSBC joined with France's Banque de l'Indochine to issue the first foreign loan to the Thai government for its railroad construction project. • HSBC Bank (Vietnam) Company Limited HSBC has had a long history in Vietnam, having opened a branch in Saigon (present-day Ho Chi Minh City) in 1870. The branch operated for over 100 years, until its closure in 1975. In 1992, the bank opened representative offices in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) and Hanoi; HSBC upgraded the office in HCMC to a full-service branch in August 1995. Europe • HSBC opened its Prague Branch in May 1997. • HSBC SA operates around 380 branches in France since the takeover of Credit Commercial de France, primarily operating under the HSBC brand. HSBC France is now the HSBC Group’s lead bank in the Eurozone, focusing on certain capital market products for a global audience, and high net worth and international business in France. • HSBC Trinkaus & Burkhardt AG traces its origins to 1785. It has operations in private, commercial and investment banking and asset management. • HSBC Hellas HSBC has been operating in Greece since 1981. In 2001, HSBC acquired Barclay's operations in Greece, which amounted to 13 branches and included fund management. • HSBC Bank Malta plc is one of the largest banks in Malta. It is a listed company but its majority shareholder is the HSBC Group. HSBC Bank Malta traces its origins back to the founding of the Anglo-Egyptian Bank in 1864, which makes it the second oldest bank in Malta. • HSBC has limited operations in Poland - mainly private/offshore banking. • HSBC (Spain) dates back to the establishment of a branch in Madrid in 1982. • HSBC Private Bank is the Swiss operating subsidiaries of the group's Private Banking business, with 12 locations in the country. • HSBC Bank plc is one of the "Big Five" high street banks in the UK, maintaining a large network of branches in England and Wales, with a smaller presence in Scotland and Northern Ireland. It acquired this presence in 1992 with the acquisition of Midland Bank plc. It also operates the previously Midland-owned telephone and internet bank First Direct, the consumer lending brand Beneficial Finance, and the financial services divisions of Marks & Spencer and the John Lewis Partnership. • HSBC Bank AS is now the fifth largest private bank in Turkey, having expanded through internal financing and via acquisition since entering the market in 1990. The bank has a network of around 330 branches, offering products and services to corporate, commercial and personal customers, both under the HSBC brand as well as the Advantage brand. • In Russia, HSBC operates through HSBC Bank Ltd (RR), which is the 96th largest bank in the country and is an affiliate of HSBC Bank plc. Middle East and Africa • HSBC Algeria commenced operating in 2008, after HSBC received permission in 2007 from the Bank of Algeria to establish a subsidiary. The branch has a capital of 2,5 billion dinars, or about 25 million euros, which it will increase to 3,6 billion dinars (36 million euros) within three years. It is headed by an Algerian, Rachid Sekak, the former head of foreign debt at the Bank of Algeria, who had earlier came from HSBC's operations in Paris.[46] • HSBC Bank Armenia cjsc is a 70 per cent indirectly owned subsidiary of HSBC Bank. Armenian business interests own the remaining equity. The bank began operations as Midland Armenia Bank in Yerevan in March 1996 and was the first international bank to open in Armenia. It is one of the leading banks in the foreign exchange market. • HSBC Bank Egypt SAE traces its origins to a joint-venture bank established in 1982. In 2001 HSBC was able to increase its ownership stake from 40% to 94.5%, after which it rebranded the bank as part of the HSBC group. • HSBC Bank Georgia jsc opened its first branch in Tbilisi, Georgia June 2008 and a second one in 2009. Its offer as presented on the bank's website is tailored for corporate customers and private/offshore banking. • In the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the HSBC Group is represented by HSBC Bank Middle East Limited, the largest and most widely represented international bank in the Middle East. HSBC's presence dates back to its acquisition in 1959 of British Bank of the Middle East, which had been present in Jordan since 1889. • HSBC dates its presence in Lebanon to 1949. HSBC has branches located in St. Georges Bay, Dora, Ras Beirut, Verdun and Zouk. • HSBC Bank Middle East Limited . HSBC Oman represents a key part of HSBC Bank Middle East's business since 1959, with 6 branches and 3 customer services outlets. HSBC in Oman offers a full range of Personal Financial Services such as Current and Savings Accounts, Time Deposits, packaged financial products like HSBC Premier and STATUS, Credit Cards, Personal Loans and Home Loans. • SABB (The Saudi British Bank) In Saudi Arabia HSBC is represented by The Saudi British Bank, which is a 40% owned affiliate. HSBC is also a joint venture partner in HSBC Saudi Arabia Limited, the Kingdom’s first full service independent investment bank. • HSBC Bank Middle East Limited The United Arab Emirates represents a key part of HSBC Bank Middle East's business, with 16 branches and the firm's head office located here. • HSBC Bank Qatar provides a wide range of banking services for both corporate and individual customers in Qatar. HSBC is the largest foreign bank in Qatar and has five branches, in Doha Main Office, Al Sadd, West Bay, FTB and Grand Hamad Street as well as a large network of ATMs at 21 different locations. • HSBC established an indirect presence in Sub-Saharan Africa in 1981 through Equator Bank, a joint venture with Nedbank and the bank's executives, and entered the South African market in 1995 with a representative office. In 2003, HSBC converted the reop office in Johannesburg to a branch. The Johannesburg branch is now the regional management office for all of HSBC's Sub-Saharan Africa activities and offers corporate banking, transaction banking, investment banking, treasury and capital markets services to HSBC's major multinational clients, large local corporate and financial institutions, and governments. HSBC Securities (South Africa) offers equities services. Global product lines and programmes Group Service Centres As a cost saving measure HSBC is offshoring processing work to lower cost economies in order to reduce the cost of providing services in developed countries. These locations take on work such as data processing and customer service, but also internal software engineering at Pune, Hyderabad (India), Vishakhapatnam (India), Kolkata (India), Guangzhou (China), and Curitiba (Brazil). Chief Operating Officer Alan Jebson said in March 2005 that he would be very surprised if fewer than 25,000 people were working in the centres over the next three years: “I don’t have a precise target but I would be surprised if we had less than 15 (global service centres) in three years’ time.” He went on to say that each centre cost the bank from $20m to $30m to set up, but that for every job moved the bank saves about $20,000 (£10,400).[47] Trade unions, particularly in the US and UK, blame these centres for job losses in developed countries, and also for the effective imposition of wage caps on their members.[47] Currently, HSBC operates centers out of eight countries, including Brazil (Curitiba), The Czech Republic (Ostrava), India (Hyderabad, Bangalore, Visakhapatnam, Mumbai, Gurgaon, Kolkata and Pune), China (Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen), Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur), Poland (Krakow), Sri Lanka (Rajagiriya) and Philippines (Manila). The Malta trial for a UK high value call centre has resulted in a growing operation that country. An option under consideration is reported to be a processing centre in Vietnam to access the French skills of the population and therefore cut costs in the bank’s French operations. On June 27, 2006, HSBC reported that a "small number" of customers had suffered from fraud totaling £233,000 after an employee at the Bangalore call centre supplied confidential customer information to fraudsters.[48] HSBC Private Bank HSBC Private Bank [49] is the group's private banking operation, providing private banking and trustee services to wealthy individuals and their families worldwide. The Private Bank has in excess of 60 offices worldwide, with the major centres being Miami, New York, London, Geneva and Hong Kong. HSBC Premier Centre, Ikebukuro, Japan. HSBC Premier HSBC Premier[50] is the group's premium financial services product. The exact benefits and qualification criteria vary depending on country, but typically require deposits and investments of at least $100,000, £50,000, or €100,000. Alternatively those who have an individual annual income of at least £100,000 paid into their HSBC Premier Bank Account and are a customer of the bank's Independent Financial Advisory Service. Customers have a dedicated Premier Relationship Manager, global 24 hour access to call centres,free banking services and preferential rates. A HSBC Premier customer receives the HSBC Premier services in all countries that offer HSBC Premier, without having to meet that country's qualifying criteria. HSBC Bank International HSBC Bank International[51] is the offshore banking arm of the HSBC Group, focusing on providing offshore solutions and cross border services to expatriates and migrants. It provides a full range of multi-currency personal banking services to a range of customer segments, including a full internet banking and telephone banking service. Sometimes referred to as "HSBC Offshore", the business also offers independent financial planning, and has representative offices all over the world, often working alongside local HSBC operations in those regions. HSBC Bank International originated from the business started by Midland Bank and is based in the Channel Islands with further operations on the Isle of Man. Its operations in the Channel Islands are centred around its registered headquarters on the seafront in St Helier, Jersey. Named 'HSBC House', the building comprises departments such as Premier, Global Funds & Investments, e-Business and a 24 hour 'Direct Banking Centre'. HSBCnet HSBCnet[52] is a global service that caters to local business needs by offering specialised functionality for different regions worldwide. The system provides access to transaction banking functionality - ranging from payments and cash management to trade services features - as well as to research and analytical content from HSBC. It also includes foreign exchange and money markets trading functionality. The system is used widely by HSBC's high-end corporate and institutional clients served variously by the bank's global banking and markets, commercial banking and global transaction banking divisions. HSBCnet is also the brand under which HSBC markets its global e-commerce proposition to its corporate and institutional clients. HFC Bank (UK Operation) is a wholly owned subsidiary, with 135 High Street branches in the UK selling loans to the "sub-prime" market. During 2007 and 2008, has been trying to fend off a union recognition campaign by the Trade Union Unite. HSBC Direct HSBC Direct is a telephone/online direct banking operation which attracts customers through mortgages, accounts and savings. It was first launched in the USA[53] in November 2005 and is now available in Britain, Canada,[54] Taiwan[55], South Korea[56] and France. Poland is launching business direct in September 2009. Brand and advertising The group announced in November 1999 that the HSBC brand and the hexagon symbol would be adopted as the unified brand in all the markets where HSBC operates, with the aim of enhancing recognition of the group and its values by customers, shareholders and staff throughout the world. Logo The hexagon symbol was originally adopted by The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation as its logo in 1983. It was developed from the bank’s house flag, a white rectangle divided diagonally to produce a red hourglass shape. Like many other Hong Kong company flags that originated in the 19th century, and because of its founder's nationality, the design was based on the cross of Saint Andrew. The logo was designed by graphic artist Henry Steiner. The 2004 Jaguar car, being driven by Mark Webber. Sponsorship Having sponsored the Jaguar Racing Formula One team since the days of Stewart Grand Prix, HSBC ended its relationship with the sport when Red Bull purchased Jaguar Racing from Ford. HSBC has now switched its focus to golf, taking title sponsorship of events such as the HSBC World Match Play Championship, HSBC Women's World Match Play Championship (now defunct), HSBC Champions and HSBC Women's Champions. In football HSBC sponsors French club AS Monaco and Mexican club C.F. Pachuca, and in rugby league, HSBC sponsors Telford Raiders in the Rugby League Conference. In Australia, HSBC sponsors the New South Wales Waratahs rugby team in the Super 14 rugby union competition, as well as the Hawthorn Football Club in the Australian Football League. In the United States, HSBC owns the naming rights to the home arena of the National Hockey League's Buffalo Sabres until 2026. HSBC’s other sponsorships are mainly in the area of education, health and the environment. In November 2006, HSBC announced a $5 million partnership with SOS Children as part of Future First.[57] HSBC sponsors the Great Canadian Geography Challenge, which has had around 2 million participants in the past 12 years. Since 2001, HSBC has sponsored the Celebration of Light, an annual musical fireworks competition in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. In 2007 HSBC announced it would be a sponsor of the National Hockey League's Vancouver Canucks and Calgary Flames. HSBC has also sponsored a professional gaming team that was disbanded late 2007. HSBC sponsored the 2009 British and Irish Lions tour to South Africa.[58] HSBC is the official banking partner of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships, providing banking facilities on site and renaming the Road to Wimbledon junior event, as The HSBC Road to Wimbledon National 14 and Under Challenge.[59] Customer groups HSBC splits its business into four distinct groups: Personal financial services HSBC provides more than 100 million customers worldwide with a full range of personal financial services, including current and savings accounts, mortgage loans, car financing, insurance, credit cards, loans, pensions and investments. HSBC was recently rated the worst in customer service by Forrester Research, which asked bank customers to rank their banks.[60] Commercial banking HSBC provides financial services to small, medium-sized and middle-market enterprises. The group has almost 2.5 million of such customers, including sole proprietors, partnerships, clubs and associations, incorporated businesses and publicly quoted companies. Global banking and markets Private banking Main article: HSBC Private Bank HSBC Private Bank is the marketing name for the private banking business conducted by the principal private banking subsidiaries of the HSBC Group worldwide. HSBC Private Bank, together with the private banking activities of HSBC Trinkaus, known collectively as Group Private Banking, provides services to high net worth individuals and their families through 93 locations in some 42 countries and territories in Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, the Americas, the Middle East and Africa. As of December 2007, profits before tax were US$1,511 million and combined client assets under management were US$494 billion. In September 2008, HSBC announced that it would combine its two Swiss private banks under one brand name in 2009, with HSBC Guyerzeller and HSBC Private Bank to be merged into one legal entity, under the newly appointed CEO of HSBC Private Bank, Alexandre Zeller.[61]

So if you haven't heard, Kate Gosselin has abandoned her trademark 'do and is now sporting extensions and side-swept bangs. Personally, I think any new look would be a big improvement for Gosselin, that old hairstyle was pretty awful (don't you agree?).

Of course, she isn't the only celebrity to ever re-invent her look. Plenty of other stars -- like these ones, for example -- have used hair and makeup to get a "do-over" on their reputation. I think this example has to be my favorite, check out how Queen Latifah went from hip-hop tomboy to full-on glamour girl here.

Are you looking to update your look too? While extensions can be pricey at a salon, you can do them yourself at home with help from this video how-to. But there are also tons of other ways to spice-up your look:

* Try giving yourself bangs, this video will show you how.
* Or at-home hair color can completely change your look in less than half an hour -- just be sure to check out these tips before you take the plunge.