HSBC loses £22.6m on HQ sale

BANKING giant HSBC, which last week announced record profits of £7.7bn, has been forced to swallow a huge loss on the sale of its former London HQ.

The distinctive blue glass offices at 10 Lower Thames Street on the edge of the City were originally the home of investment bank Samuel Montagu, which became part of Midland bank. Midland was in turn bought by HSBC in 1992.

The building was put up for sale in April 2000 after HSBC decided to move its base from the City to Canary Wharf.

In May last year, the 12-storey building was sold to Express group publisher Richard Desmond who, according to Land Registry records, paid £28m.

That compares with a valuation of £135m in 1989 when Midland Montagu bought the building by taking over the company that had been created to own it, Billingsgate City Securities (BCS).

HSBC refuses to say anything about the sale. The most recent records for BCS show that it suffered a £22.6m 'actual loss' on last year's sale to Desmond.