City Of London
HSBC’s Elhedery, Fresh From Sabbatical, Stakes Claim to Be CEO
- Georges Elhedery took a six-month break from banking this year
- Lebanon-born trader is burnishing his credentials for top job
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A six-month sabbatical might be a time of relaxation for some, but for HSBC Holdings Plc’s incoming Chief Financial Officer Georges Elhedery it provided an opportunity to burnish his credentials for the bank’s top job.
Elhedery, who was born in Lebanon and already speaks Arabic, English, French and German, spent several hours a week of his break getting to grips with the Chinese language, according to people familiar with the matter. It looks like a wise use of time as he emerges among the frontrunners to be HSBC’s next boss once Noel Quinn eventually departs.