HSBC cuts to the core

HSBC is planning an aggressive assault on the high street with a range of simpler banking, savings and insurance products that will be priced to rank in the top five of the industry's best buy tables.

Michael Geoghegan, six months into his new post as chief executive of HSBC's British business, also intends to put a fresh focus on the bank's branches as part of his effort to boost HSBC's share of financial services products.

HSBC's is one of the "big four" high street banks yet has a 4% share of the mortgage market compared with a 15% share of current accounts.

Finance union Unifi has been angered by what it sees as a new emphasis on sales targets for staff at the same that the bank is cutting 7,500 jobs, of which 4,500 are being transferred to low wage centres in countries such as India and Malaysia.

Mr Geoghegan is adamant that staff are not being forced to sell. Even so he has sent a morale-boosting video to HSBC's UK staff in which he is interviewed by newsreader Mary Nightingale about the "managing for growth" programme he is implementing.

He counters union assertions that the bank is choosing sales over customer service by saying he has hired Joe Garner from electrical retailer Dixons to the new role of head of customer propositions. Other banks such as HBOS and Abbey National have similar roles.

"The whole concept is to make sure we understand what the customer wants," Mr Geoghegan said.

Work is underway on cutting HSBC's 300-strong product range to 12 to 15 core items. It will be completed by Mr Garner when he arrives in September and is reminiscent of the strategy employed at Abbey to try to reinvigorate its position on the high street.

"We are going to have top five pricing for all our products," Mr Geoghegan said.

"We are going to eliminate the vast majority of products we offer," he said.