HSBC names replacement CIO for investment bank

HSBC has named the replacement for the departing CIO of its investment banking division, with an internal promotion filling the gap.

Richard Herbert has been given the job of Global Banking and Markets (GBM) CIO, moving from the role of head of global FX and regulatory IT in the same division.

Herbert joined HSBC, the UK’s largest bank, in 2011. Before that he was head of business improvement at RBS, as well as CIO for global markets and Europe IT at ABN Amro. He has also worked at Deutsche Bank and UBS.

The bank recently announced that GBM CIO Sumeet Chabria was leaving after 21 years at HSBC in various roles. Chabria decided to leave his role and return to his native US for personal reasons.  

HSBC said a shortlist of CIO candidates had been reviewed, which included internal staff. The bank also said it had tried to keep hold of Chabria. “Together with Sumeet, we looked at ways to keep him in the role while supporting his return to the US, but collectively decided this was not practical.”

Herbert’s arrival is not the only change at the top at HSBC. The bank recently appointed Darryl West, who left Barclays in December 2014, as group CIO. West left his previous role as CIO of Lloyds Banking Group to take up a similar position at Barclays in November 2013. He was group CIO and deputy chief operations and technology officer when he left Barclays.

The changes in senior IT roles are not surprising given the opportunities and challenges involved. CIOs with the right skills are in high demand given the IT transformations taking place at banks. Additionally, new technologies like cloud computing and automation software are streamlining internal operations.