By Selena Li
HONG KONG (Reuters) -Trista Sun, one of HSBC’s top wealth executives, will leave the bank, following a large scale-down of a China project she oversaw.
Sun, managing director for strategic projects at HSBC’s International Wealth and Premier Banking, “will pursue opportunities outside of HSBC”, said Barry O’Byrne, the bank’s global wealth CEO, in a memo issued on Thursday.
A company spokesperson confirmed the contents of the memo.
Sun did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
She led the bank’s International Wealth and Premier Banking business in China for three years until May, when she was relocated to Hong Kong from Shanghai, Reuters reported at the time, citing a memo.
HSBC was reducing staff numbers at its China digital wealth business – called Pinnacle – by nearly half, or about 900 people, Reuters reported in February, citing two sources.
The move was a sharp reversal of the bank’s ambition for the unit, which was part of its expansion plans in the country.
The downsizing came after HSBC launched probes in China in 2024 to examine Pinnacle’s staff compensation structures and whether suppliers had inflated expenses, Reuters reported, citing sources close to the matter. Pinnacle, which debuted in 2020, enables HSBC to sell insurance and fund products through a digital platform in China.
HSBC has vowed to pivot to Asia, with its wealth division as an area of particular focus, after it embarked upon a restructuring of its global presence last year.
Sun’s role won’t be backfilled, according to the memo. O’Byrne said a team within the wealth division would take over the collaboration activities with which she drove cross-business revenue growth opportunities.
Beginning in Hong Kong and working her way up to global chief operating officer of wealth management and global head of international and cross-border, roles based in London, Sun rose to the highest rank of wealth executives at HSBC within 10 years, according to her LinkedIn profile.
Before relocating to Hong Kong in May, Sun was also executive vice president of HSBC China, according to the profile, making her the de-facto second most senior HSBC executive in the onshore market.
(Reporting by Selena Li; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Thomas Derpinghaus)
