HSBC Bank Malta
| Company type | Public limited company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Banking, Financial services |
| Founded | 1864 (as Anglo-Egyptian Bank) |
| Headquarters | Qormi , Malta |
Area served | Malta, Gozo |
| Products | Banking and financial services |
Number of employees | 1800 (circa 1999) |
| Parent | HSBC Bank plc |
| Website | www |
HSBC Bank Malta plc functions as the Maltese branch of the British global banking and financial services corporation HSBC. Its main office is situated in Qormi, with a network exceeding 12 branches distributed throughout Malta and Gozo. Operating under HSBC’s European division, it is accountable to HSBC Bank plc.
Since the establishment of European Banking Supervision in 2014, HSBC Bank Malta has held the status of a Significant Institution and falls under the direct oversight of the European Central Bank.
History
The foundation of HSBC Malta can be linked to the Anglo-Egyptian Bank, founded in 1864, which merged with the National Bank of South Africa and the Colonial Bank, established in 1836. This merger resulted in the creation of Barclays Bank Dominion Colonial Overseas in 1925, following Barclays’ acquisition of Colonial Bank in 1918. The institution was renamed Barclays Bank D.C.O. in 1954 and later became known as Barclays Bank International in 1971.
Nationalisation
In 1975, Barclays Bank International's Maltese operations were nationalized by the Maltese government, which rebranded the entity as Mid-Med Bank and acquired all remaining Barclays shares by 1979. The government divested 33% of Mid-Med to public investors in 1991, and by 1993 Mid-Med was publicly traded on Malta’s stock exchange. The bank broadened its services by purchasing a 25% interest in Lohombus Bank, a specialist housing finance institution, as well as acquiring the Investment Finance Bank in 1995. By 1996, Mid-Med gained controlling interest in Lohombus Bank and inaugurated a representative office in London.
Mid-Med joins the HSBC Group
In September 1996, Midland Bank became the first foreign bank granted an unrestricted banking licence in Malta by launching a branch there. Midland Bank then purchased the Maltese government’s majority stake in Mid-Med—67.1% direct and an additional 2.7% indirect—in 1999, while Mid-Med continued its listing on the Malta Stock Exchange. At that point, Mid-Med was Malta’s largest commercial bank with a workforce of approximately 1,800 employees across 60 branches.
Aligning with HSBC’s global branding initiatives, Mid-Med was renamed HSBC Malta Bank plc. HSBC consolidated Mid-Med’s representative offices located in Dubai, Milan, and Luxembourg into its local operations but preserved dedicated "Malta Desk" services within these markets. Additionally, Lohombus Bank was reorganized into HSBC Malta (Home Loans) Ltd.