Are you a Mx, Misc, Ind or Mre? Bank’s new transgender rules
BANKING giant HSBC yesterday began rolling out special services for transgender customers.
It said the move was to provide a better banking experience and included offering a choice of 10 “gender neutral” titles.
The bank said the new titles would allow people who do not identify with a particular gender or do not want to be identified by gender, to choose from the title list.
The choices are Mx (an abbreviation of “mix”), Ind (for “individual”), M (an abbreviation used in France), Misc (used for “miscellaneous”), Mre (for “mystery”), Msr (which is a combination of Miss and Sir), Myr (used in other parts of the world), Pr (an abbreviation of “person”), Sai (used in Asia) and Ser (used in Latin America).
HSBC said the titles can be applied across customers’ accounts, including bank cards and correspondence.
Champion
The bank’s chief executive, Antonio Simoes, 42, has spoken about how being homosexual has actually helped him get to the top.
In one interview he said: “Being gay is a plus for me. It has made me a more authentic person, with better empathy and better emotional intelligence. If I wasn’t gay, I probably would not be CEO of the bank.”
HSBC is a champion of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) rights.
Noel Quinn, head of the bank’s global commercial banking, said: “Now more than ever it’s vital we show our solidarity with LGBT colleagues and customers around the world.”
To make a gender change to an HSBC account, customers must take an amended passport, driving licence or birth certificate to their branch.
Today is the International Transgender Day of Visibility.