William Charles Langdon Brown (9 September 1931 – 29 June 2024) was a British banker of the

Standard Chartered Bank Standard Chartered plc is a multinational bank with operations in consumer, corporate and institutional banking, and treasury services. Despite being headquartered in the United Kingdom, it does not conduct retail banking in the UK, and around ...

. He was an Unofficial Member of the

Legislative Council of Hong Kong The Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (LegCo) is the unicameral legislature of Hong Kong. It sits under China's " one country, two systems" constitutional arrangement, and is the power centre of Hong Kong ...

from 1980 to 1985.

Biography

Brown was born on 9 September 1931 in London to Charles Leonard Brown and Kathleen May Tizzard. He married Nachiko Sagawa in 1959; they have one son and two daughters. Brown was educated at the John Ruskin School,

Croydon Croydon is a large town in south London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a local government district of Greater London. It is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater London, with an extensi ...

and the Ashbourne Grammar School,

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

. He joined the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China, serving throughout the Far East from 1954 to 1975. He became the Area General Manager, Hong Kong from 1975–87 and Senior General Manager (London) for Asia Pacific Region, and the Executive Director of the

PLC (SCB) in 1987. In 1988, Brown was promoted to Managing Director and Deputy Group Chief Executive of Standard Chartered. From 1989 to 1991, he was the Group Deputy Chairman. He became a non-executive Director from 1991 to 1994. He was also Director and Treasurer of the

Royal Commonwealth Society The Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS) is a non-governmental organisation with a mission to promote the value of the Commonwealth and the values upon which it is based. The Society upholds the values of the Commonwealth Charter, promoting confli ...

and the Commonwealth Trust from 1991 to 1995. He was also Director of the Hongkong Investment Trust PLC, the Kexim Bank, the Arbuthnot Latham & Co. and Chairman of the Atlantis Japan Growth Fund Ltd in the 1990s. Brown was appointed to the

as an unofficial member from 1980 to 1985, at the time when the rate of the

Hong Kong dollar The Hong Kong dollar (, currency symbol, sign: HK$; ISO 4217, code: HKD) is the official currency of the Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It is subdivided into 100 cent (currency), cents or 1000 Mill (currency), mils. The H ...

was highly unstable due to the issue of Hong Kong's future change of sovereignty. As a member of the Banking Consultative Committee and the Exchange Fund Advisory Committee, Brown helped to stabilise the exchange rate. He was also director of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, the

Community Chest of Hong Kong The Community Chest of Hong Kong () is an independent, nonprofit organization established on 8 November 1968 in Hong Kong. As one of the most important charities in Hong Kong, The Community Chest serves as an umbrella organization to provide gr ...

, the

Hong Kong Trade Development Council The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is a statutory body established in 1966 as the international marketing dedicated to creating opportunities for Hong Kong's businesses. The organisation has 50 offices around the world, including ...

, the Independent Commission Against Corruption, the Mass Transit Railway, and the

Hong Kong Girl Guides Association Hong Kong Girl Guides Association () is the sole Guide organisation in Hong Kong. It was formally established in 1919 though the first Girl Guides Company was formed in 1916. The association became a full member of the World Association of Girl G ...

. Brown was also chairman of the

Hong Kong Association of Banks The Hong Kong Association of Banks (HKAB; Chinese language:香港銀行公會 or 銀公會 in short) is an association created based on a series of Bank Ordinances enacted since 1948. In 1981 the association was established and replaced the Exch ...

, the Hong Kong Export Credit Insurance Advisory Committee, the Special Committee on Land Supply and the Hong Kong Ballet Academy. He was the member of the Council of the Chinese University of Hong Kong from 1979 to 1987. For his public service, Brown received an honorary doctoral degree of Social Science from the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 1987. Brown died on 29 June 2024, at the age of 92.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, William Charles Langdon 1931 births 2024 deaths Members of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong Hong Kong bankers English bankers Standard Chartered people Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Politicians from London