In a sign of renewed confidence in its biggest market, Standard Chartered is going on a hiring splurge in Hong Kong this year (2023) as the city reopens its border with mainland China.
No doubt SC would have achieved the feat of lifting its current headcount in the city by up to 9% after the British bank adds 300 to 500 employees to its ranks of roughly 5,500 to 5,800.
This development comes after the lender’s business in the global finance hub begins to recover to pre-pandemic levels.
Chief Financial Officer, Andy Halford in a results presentation on Friday, said despite Hong Kong’s economic challenges, the bank grew its operating income in the city by 9% to just over $3.7 billion, which was “back to around 2019 levels.”
Speaking to analysts he stated that the firm is encouraged by early signs of “a pickup” in Hong Kong.
As for Standard Chartered (SCBFF) Hong Kong CEO Mary Huen, she revealed that the new recruitment drive would position the bank to capitalize on the reopening of the city’s border with mainland China.
Meanwhile, in anticipation for a major boost for the economies of two cities, China has fully reopened its borders with its special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macao this month.
In the words of Huen on Friday, the reopening “is set to increase business opportunities” in fintech, wealth management and China’s Greater Bay Area, an economic zone that connects Guangdong province with Hong Kong and Macao.
“We need to hire more people as we expect there will be a good growth in loan and wealth management demand this year,” she added.
