Read Mauricio's story
I think HSBC is the future of banking because the world is evolving, the industry is evolving and when you see the focus and the regions that are going to be pretty much the future in the next five, ten, fifteen years, the advantage that HSBC has is that we are already in these regions. We are in the emerging markets, we are the biggest bank in Asia, we are in Latin America, and we are in Europe. So as the industry evolves into those faster-growing regions, the bank can capitalise on the fact that they are already in the right place.
Initially, what motivated me to join HSBC was its presence in Latin America. Growing up in Mexico, I already knew that the bank was pretty strong there and had a presence there, and eventually of course I learnt that the focus was on emerging markets which was a great pull for me. I was also motivated by the diversity of the people and culture. Interestingly enough, I was attracted by the possibility or the expectation of getting to work in different parts of the world, getting to travel and meet other people. And actually, it's been quite fulfilling because in the two years that I've been here I've been to Beijing, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, Santiago, Mexico City – you name it. It's fulfilling to know that some of those expectations before joining the Bank have actually become a constant reality for me.
I think a good example of the future of banking is a transaction we closed last September. We basically issued a perpetual bond for a very large Latin American oil and gas company. The transaction is interesting because not only the deal itself is non-conventional in the sense that the bond is a perpetual bond and has no maturity, but the investor base of this particular bond is different from the conventional investor base so this is primarily targeted to Asian and European retail private banks.
So the client issued a very successful perpetual bond and I think it reflects the future of banking because it shows how the markets are connected and how sophisticated those are, in that a Latin American borrower can actually issue a bond that's sold to Asian and European investors.
I chose Capital Markets simply because they are the best in the street. Capital Markets for Latin America has been the number one team for the past three years, the people are great and the best at what they do, and not only on the Latin America side but the Bank as a whole is known as a bond powerhouse. We have been recognised as the best emerging markets bond house for the last three years as well. And the whole Bank portrays a very strong and unique fixed-income platform.
The most exciting work I've done here in Capital Markets at HSBC is the live deals and transactions that we do. It's very exciting to raise capital and to be part of the process from organisation to execution. You get to work with the CEOs, CFOs and the treasurers of the companies. If you're lucky you get to travel to road shows and meet investors in Europe, in Asia, here in the US. And obviously it's exciting as well because you're following the markets all the time and you have to make sure that there's a positive window when issuing a bond and for me that's very exciting.
Living in New York City is just incredible. Once you've lived in NYC, there's nothing like it. The diversity of the people, the fast pace, the numerous places you can go for different things from culture to having fun to entertainment – anything. I can't imagine myself moving to a different city now.
