London-headquartered HSBC has announced the appointment of several senior executives in yet another reshuffle under fresh CEO Georges Elhedery.
HSBC has appointed Richard Blackburn as interim group chief risk and compliance officer, according to a statement. He will also become a member of the group operating committee. A process has begun to appoint a permanent successor for this role, which will consider internal and external candidates.
Blackburn has 35 years of financial services experience. He joined HSBC in 2016 and held senior risk leadership positions, including chief risk officer for global banking markets, commercial banking, MENAT (Middle East, North Africa and Turkey) and Europe as well as his current role as global head of traded and treasury risk management & global analytics.
Sustainability Chief
Group chief sustainability officer Celine Herweijer will step down to pursue new opportunities, effective December 31, after joining the bank’s group executive committee in 2021 to play a pivotal role in advancing its net zero ambitions by 2050.
Julian Wentzel, head of global banking, MENAT, will take over on an interim basis and report to group chief financial officer Pam Kaur. Wentzel has 25 years of experience and joined HSBC in 2015.
A recruitment process for a permanent sustainability chief will begin with a further update to be provided in due course.
Middle East CEO
In addition, Selim Kervanci has been appointed as CEO, Middle East, subject to regulatory approval. In the role, he will report to Surendra Rosha and David Liao, co-CEOs of Asia and the Middle East.
Kervanci joined HSBC in 1996 and over the past 28 years, he has built connections with clients, officials, and regulators across the Middle East. He has been on the MENAT executive committee for more than 10 years and is currently CEO of HSBC Turkiye.
«I would like to congratulate Richard, Julian and Selim on their new roles, and thank Celine for her significant contribution to our net zero ambitions since 2021,» said HSBC group CEO Georges Elhedery.
