Hang Seng Bank CEO resigns

Margaret Leung will be replaced by Rose W M Lee, Advisor, China and Hong Kong, HSBC.

The Board of Directors of Hang Seng Bank announced on Monday that Mrs Margaret Leung, 59, will retire from her position as Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive of the Bank with effect from the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting on 11 May 2012.

Mrs Leung, who assumed her present position in May 2009, will retire after 34 years of service with the HSBC Group. Her position will be taken up by Ms Rose W M Lee, Advisor, China and Hong Kong, HSBC, on 11 May 2012.

Dr Raymond Ch’ien, Chairman of the Hang Seng Board of Directors, said: “We would like to thank Mrs Leung for her outstanding contributions. She has successfully steered Hang Seng through the challenges of the prevailing international financial crisis and the continuing problems of the Eurozone, according to a Hang Seng Bank report.

Under her outstanding leadership, Hang Seng has emerged stronger than ever as a trustworthy, solidly-managed, and award-winning financial institution providing innovative products and exemplary customer service. We also owe her our gratitude for strengthening Hang Seng’s position as a caring and socially responsible community bank in Hong Kong and the Mainland. We wish her all the best in her retirement. We welcome Ms Lee to Hang Seng Bank.”

Since Ms Lee joined HSBC in 1977, the focus of her career has been on China and Hong Kong, most recently as Advisor, China and Hong Kong. She was a pioneer in China banking from the earliest days of market opening.