Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Penn on 14 March (HL Deb col 1282), what exemptions to the Banking Act 2009 they granted to HSBC as part of its purchase of Silicon Valley Bank.

On Monday March 13, the government, in consultation with the Bank of England, used its powers under the Banking Act 2009 to broaden an existing exemption in ring-fencing legislation to facilitate HSBC’s purchase of SVB UK. This has allowed HSBC’s ring-fenced bank to provide preferential intra-group lending to SVB UK and ensured SVB UK has the necessary liquidity to continue operating.

Separately, as a result of this existing provision in legislation, SVB UK will be exempt from ring-fencing requirements for a four-year transition period. The government intends to lay in due course another statutory instrument to extend this exemption beyond the four-year transition period, subject to conditions. This exemption will ensure that SVB UK can remain a commercially viable stand-alone business as part of HSBC group. HSBC itself remains subject to the ring-fencing regime.