HSBC chief executive John Flint ousted after less than 18 months

Board of one of the world’s biggest banks appoints Noel Quinn as interim CEO

HSBC chief executive John Flint has been ousted after less than 18 months in the job having lost the confidence of the bank’s board of directors in an abrupt move for a company famed for its conservatism.

The bank said Mr Flint had resigned “by mutual agreement with the board” and that it had appointed Noel Quinn, head of its commercial banking unit, as interim chief executive while it searches for a replacement.

The bank’s board of directors had become increasingly frustrated at the slow pace of change at HSBC since Mr Flint took the top job in February 2018, according to two people briefed on the circumstances surrounding his departure.

The board decided that Mr Flint had to be replaced some time ago but wanted to wait for an opportune moment, before deciding to make the announcement alongside HSBC’S relatively strong first-half re

sults on Monday, the people added.

Rumours that Mr Flint was unhappy in the job had swirled for months, with some senior HSBC executives recounting clashes with Mark Tucker, the bank’s chairman. “They are both incredibly stubborn,” one executive told the Financial Times last month.

The departure of Mr Flint throws open one of the biggest jobs in global banking at a time when HSBC — which generates 80 per cent of its profits in Asia — must navigate escalating tensions between the US and China as well as protests in Hong Kong, its largest market. The bank also announced that it would be cutting thousands of jobs alongside the departure of its chief executive.

In an interview with the FT on Monday, Mr Tucker said: “This had nothing to do with personalities; this was a unanimous decision of the non-executive directors.”

Mr Tucker said the board would do a “proper search, internally and externally” to find a replacement for Mr Flint, but said that Mr Quinn had a “wonderful opportunity to show what he can do”.

He added: “Noel will be able to bring his experience and his perspective to think about growth, to move back again to the growth agenda.”

Ronit Ghose, bank analyst at Citigroup, said Mr Tucker and HSBC’S directors had “clearly lost confidence in [Mr Flint’s] ability to navigate the tougher outlook faced by HSBC given the geopolitical and macro uncertainties, structural headwinds for global banks, and digital disruption challenges”.

“In addition, we believe there were likely differences in style between the outgoing CEO and the chairman,” Mr Ghose added.

In a statement Mr Flint said: “I have agreed with the board that today’s good interim results indicate that this is the right time for change, both for me and the bank.”

Mr Tucker, who spent decades as an insurance chief executive at Prudential and AIA, ruled himself out of the running for the top job at HSBC. Asked whether he would consider taking on the role, he replied: “Under no circumstances . . . I want to leave the executive role to those with significantly greater ability and youth on their side.”