Bank sells £4.2bn of assets to life assurance unit of Swiss Re as it disposes of non-core businesses

HSBC has sold its 400,000 British pensions to an arm of Swiss Re, the Zurich-based reinsurer. The bank has sold the policies to Admin Re, a subsidary of the Swiss group. The pensions will still be managed by HSBC, but owned by Admin Re as the British company sells off non-core assets. The pensions had an underlying value of around £4.2bn at the end of last year. Although the wait for regulatory and court approval means it will not close until the second half of next year, a separate agreement means any gains or losses will be transferred to Swiss Re. HSBC, the FTSE 100's biggest listed bank, is shedding assets not seen as core to its future as lenders deal with tougher capital requirements. Since the policies will continue to be managed by HSBC Global Asset Management, their day to day operations are unlikely to be affected.....Read more here