Scottish nationalism figured prominently in the campaign for Thursday’s UK general election. But the first true act of independence could be a move by HSBC, a bank that has never been happy in London, back to Hong Kong. The Scots expatriate clan that founded and still heads HSBC is losing patience — a virtue it never possessed in abundance — with being taxed, ringfenced and unappreciated.
HSBC ought to move, perhaps along with Standard Chartered, the other product of the former British empire that is starting to look out of place in a discontented UK. Asia is a better location for HSBC to have its head office, as it did until 1993, when it was forced to emigrate to London as a condition for buying Midland Bank. There is not much point in dallying.
Not only are economic growth prospects far better in Asia, but banks are regarded by British politicians — and many voters — with hostility and disdain. There are obvious reasons for this, but it might do them good to realise that the UK cannot remain complacent about its role in the world. It has some attractions as a global financial centre, but they are not infinite.