Vincent Cheng Hoi-Chuen GBS OBE JP (, 16 July 1948 – 28 August 2022) was a Hong Kong banker who was HSBC Holdings plc. He was also chairman of

The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited HSBC Holdings plc is a British multinational universal bank and financial services holding company. It is the largest bank in Europe by total assets ahead of BNP Paribas, with US$2.953 trillion as of December 2021. In 2021, HSBC had $10.8 tril ...

, the Asia-Pacific branch of HSBC and founding member of the group, from 2005 to 2010.

Early years and education

Cheng grew up in a poor family of six, despite difficult circumstances and having been crippled by

polio Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe s ...

at a young age. He was educated in Hong Kong and in New Zealand, receiving his Bachelor of Social Science in Economics from the

Chinese University of Hong Kong The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) is a public research university in Ma Liu Shui, Hong Kong, formally established in 1963 by a charter granted by the Legislative Council of Hong Kong. It is the territory's second-oldest university and ...

(CUHK) and a Master of Philosophy in Economics from the

University of Auckland , mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work , established = 1883; years ago , endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021) , budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021) , chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant , vice_chancellor = Dawn F ...

Career

Cheng joined The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation in 1978, when he worked in the Group Finance department. In 1982 he moved to the Bank's Group Planning department, before he was appointed Chief Economist in 1986. From April 1989 to April 1991, he was seconded to the Hong Kong Government's

Central Policy Unit The Central Policy Unit, established in 1989, was responsible for advising the Chief Executive (previously the Governor) of Hong Kong. It was replaced with the Policy Innovation and Co-ordination Unit in 2018. Previous heads * Leo Goodstadt ...

and acted as an adviser to the Governor of Hong Kong. He took up the post of general manager in June 1995 and then the first

ethnic Chinese The Chinese people or simply Chinese, are people or ethnic groups identified with China, usually through ethnicity, nationality, citizenship, or other affiliation. Chinese people are known as Zhongguoren () or as Huaren () by speakers of s ...

Executive Director of the Bank in November that same year. He was appointed vice-chairman and Chief Executive of

Hang Seng Bank Hang Seng Bank Limited () is a Hong Kong-based banking and financial services company with headquarters in Central, Hong Kong. It is one of Hong Kong's leading public companies in terms of market capitalisation and is part of the HSBC Group, ...

in 1998. On 25 May 2005, he became Chairman of

The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited (), commonly known as HSBC (), was the parent entity of the multinational HSBC banking group until 1991, and is now its Hong Kong-based Asia-Pacific subsidiary. The largest bank in Hong K ...

, taking over from David Eldon. He also became the managing director of HSBC Group and the Director of HSBC Bank Australia Limited. On 1 April 2007, he became Chairman of the HSBC Bank (China) Company Limited. He has also been appointed the first ethnic Chinese Executive Director of HSBC Holdings on 1 February 2008. In January 2008, he was appointed a member of the National Committee of the 11th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), and a senior advisor to the 11th Beijing Municipal Committee of the CPPCC. His previous government advisory roles have included Member of the Executive Council from 1995 to 1997 and a

Hong Kong Affairs Adviser Hong Kong Affairs Advisers () were appointed by the Chinese government after the last Governor of Hong Kong, Chris Patten carried out his electoral reform in the British Hong Kong, in the eve of the handover of the sovereignty of the city-state ...

to the People's Republic of China from 1994 to 1997. He was also a Member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong from 1991 to 1995. His public service duties included serving as Chairman of the Standing Committee on Directorate Salaries and Conditions of Service for the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and Member of the

Exchange Fund An exchange fund or swap fund is a mechanism specific to the U.S., first introduced in the late 1960s, that allows holders of a large amount of a single stock to diversify into a basket of other stocks without directly selling their stock. The p ...

Advisory Committee of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. He was also Honorary President of the

Hong Kong Society for Rehabilitation Hong may refer to: Places *Høng, a town in Denmark *Hong Kong, a city and a special administrative region in China *Hong, Nigeria *Hong River in China and Vietnam *Lake Hong in China Surnames *Hong (Chinese name) *Hong (Korean name) Organiz ...

. Cheng had been appointed the Justice of the Peace,

Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE) (1994), and

Gold Bauhinia Star The Gold Bauhinia Star (, GBS) is the highest Bauhinia Star rank in the honours system of Hong Kong, created in 1997 to replace the British honours system of the Order of the British Empire after the transfer of sovereignty to People's Republic of ...

(GBS) (2005).

Death

Cheng died on the night of 28 August 2022, aged 74.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheng, Vincent 1948 births 2022 deaths Hong Kong bankers Hong Kong chief executives Alumni of the Chinese University of Hong Kong University of Auckland alumni HSBC people Hang Seng Bank Officers of the Order of the British Empire Hong Kong financial businesspeople Members of the Executive Council of Hong Kong HK LegCo Members 1991–1995 Members of the 11th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Members of the Selection Committee of Hong Kong District councillors of Yuen Long District Honorary Fellows of the London School of Economics Recipients of the Gold Bauhinia Star