After review, HSBC decides to keep headquarters in London

This latest decision was a choice between Hong Kong and London, but in a unanimous vote by the board of directors, it chose the United Kingdom after an assessment of many factors including the quality of the regulator, economic importance, future growth and financial impact.

HSBC, which was founded in 1865 by a Scottish colonial shipping official in Hong Kong and added Shanghai a month later, moved headquarters to London in 1993 as a condition of its takeover of Midland Bank.

Reasons cited included the United Kingdom being an “important and globally connected economy” with an internationally respected regulatory framework and legal system, and huge experience in handling complex worldwide affairs.

“London is one of the world’s leading worldwide financial centers and home to a large pool of highly skilled, global talent”, the bank’s statement said.

Gerard Lyons, economic adviser to the Mayor, said: “HSBC’s decision is an endorsement of London as the world’s leading global financial centre”.

The bank also said it would no longer undergo the process of reviewing its headquarters every three years.

The chairman and chief executive of HSBC could both be replaced within the next two years after the bank finally decided it will keep its headquarters in London.

The decision to move jobs would hinge on the terms of a British exit from the EU, Mr Gulliver said, including whether the United Kingdom could still access the financial services “passporting” regime allowing member states to trade across national borders.

Europe’s biggest bank revealed a year ago it was considering whether to move elsewhere over concerns about stricter regulations.

Now that the headquarters decision is out of the way, some analysts say attention could turn to succession plans for the bank’s leadership.

Mr Gulliver said HSBC’s board believed that Britain would be better-off remaining in a reformed European Union, and warned that Brexit could pose “significant disruption” to the banking sector.

He said: “Overall, we see HSBC’s announcement as a missed opportunity”.

The bank’s shares were trading higher by about 0.9 percent on the London Stock Exchange while the broader market was up by more than 2 percent.

Some investors had encouraged HSBC to consider leaving Britain, partly because of a tax on banks’ global balance sheets brought in after the financial crisis.

But the bank said it had decided unanimously against the move and that London “offered the best outcome for our customers and shareholders”.

But in July, Britain scaled back the tax, removing a major disadvantage for banks such as HSBC.