HSBC Bank Malta plc - Sale of Card Acquiring Business

On 28 December HSBC Bank Malta plc issued a company announcement stating that the Bank agreed to sell its card acquiring business for €11.08 million to HSBC Merchant Services Ltd (Global) which is a Maltese subsidiary of Global Payments Inc.

HSBC explained that the new subsidiary of Global Payments Inc will be its preferred strategic provider of card acquiring services. Global Payments Inc. is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and is a leading provider of electronic transaction processing services to merchants, Independent Sales Organizations, financial institutions, government agencies and multinational corporations located throughout the United States, Canada, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.

HSBC Bank Malta’s CEO stated that this transaction further enhanced the relationship between HSBC plc and Global Payments in the UK, Asia Pacific and North America. The CEO also indicated that this development is in line with HSBC Malta’s strategic plan set out in May 2011. The profit from this transaction will help partially offset the €10 million one-off costs related to the early retirement schemes which HSBC Malta will be taking during the 2011 financial year.