The bank has added to its international list of wealth centres, seeing them as an important draw for new and existing clients, all the way up to those in the private banking category.

This week, HSBC UK officially opened the doors to the first-ever UK Wealth Centre, as the bank seeks to replicate the success of this model in Asia and other locations globally on home turf.

With an ambition to hold £100 billion ($130 billion) in assets under management over the next four years and become a top-five wealth manager in the UK, HSBC is also opening a wealth centre in Leeds – a sign of its expanding regional footprint.

The London Wealth Centre occupies the seventh and eighth floors of Smithson Tower in the St James’s area of central London. It opened to customers following a $5 million investment. The centre is designed for clients with assets, income or deposits from £100,000 upwards, covering both premier and private banking segments. Clients can meet relationship managers by invitation only.

HSBC’s private bank continues to operate from its existing offices in Cork Street, Mayfair.

The new centre offers panoramic views of London landmarks such as The Shard, the Houses of Parliament and the London Eye. It features 12 meeting rooms (including one family room), an events and networking space, a barista coffee bar, art by independent, locally-connected artists displayed in meeting rooms, a privacy pod for confidential conversations, fully-inclusive spaces and state-of-the-art AV technology throughout.

Meeting room

In recent months, HSBC has opened wealth centres in mainland China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and Taiwan.

One benefit of the new London centre is that it plays to the bank’s strength in providing a “corridor” for clients operating between North Asia, the Middle East and the UK, Charles Boulton (pictured below), head of private banking, HSBC UK, told WealthBriefing during a visit to the new facility this week.

Several clients at HSBC move through different levels of wealth, becoming more aware of what the bank offers over time. “That is fabulous in terms of distribution,” Boulton said.

Charles Boulton

As far as retail, wealth and private banking areas are concerned, Boulton said: “We want to be a £100 billion AuM business over the next four years.”

Asked about recent media commentary on high net worth individuals leaving the UK due to rising taxes, Boulton pushed back on the narrative of a mass exodus. “We [the UK] are still a popular location,” he said, arguing that the country is seen abroad as relatively stable, with a robust legal framework, cultural richness, excellent education and an interesting property market.

Level 8 reception and barista area