HSBC Holdings plc is a British universal bank and financial services group headquartered in London, England, with unique historical and business links to East Asia and a highly multinational footprint. It is the largest Europe-based bank by total assets, ahead of BNP Paribas, with US$2.953 trillion as of December 2021. In 2021, HSBC had $10.8 trillion in assets under custody and $4.9 trillion in assets under administration. HSBC traces its origin to a hong trading house in British Hong Kong. The bank opened branches in Shanghai in 1865 and was first formally incorporated in 1866. In 1991, the present parent legal entity, HSBC Holdings plc, was established in London and the historic Hong-Kong-based bank from whose initials the group took its name became that entity's fully-owned subsidiary. The next year, HSBC took over Midland Bank and thus became one of the largest domestic banks in the United Kingdom. HSBC has offices, branches and subsidiaries in 64 countries and territories across Africa, Asia, Oceania, Europe, North America, and South America, serving around 40 million customers. Wikipedia