LONDON (Reuters) – HSBC Holdings Plc, which once had operations across the globe, is now considering selling its South African operations as it continues to shift its focus to Asia, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday.
According to its website, the bank's Indian operations are run as a branch of a UK-based company and offer commercial and investment banking services, but not personal or retail banking services.
An HSBC spokesman declined to comment, citing company policy not to comment on market speculation.
Bloomberg reported that bidders based in Africa, China and the United Arab Emirates have expressed interest in HSBC's South African operations.
HSBC entered South Africa in 1995 and now serves mainly large corporations operating on the continent.
HSBC has focused on Asia and larger markets in recent years, cutting back on its operations in western markets such as the United States, France and Canada.
(Reporting by Lawrence White in London and Rishabh Chatterjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Shamnath and Jason Neely)
