HSBC is considering relocating headquarters to US, Hong Kong

HSBC, Europe's biggest bank by assets, is considering moving its headquarters to US as an alternative to Hong Kong, the Financial Times reported, citing unidentified people with knowledge of the process.

The plan to move is "about halfway through the process" and the board hoped to make a decision by the end of the year, Douglas Flint, chairman of HSBC, told the FT.

HSBC, as the Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corp., was based in Hong Kong for more than 100 years, and moved its domicile to London in 1993 ahead of the transfer of sovereignty of Hong Kong from Britain to China.

This year in April HSBC first announced it was considering moving its domicile from the UK, in part over concern about excessive tax and regulation in the UK.

The FT said China's intervention in the local stock market during the volatility in the summer had raised questions about Hong Kong as a final destination, and some unidentified shareholders were quoted as saying the US was definitely an option, because the regulatory climate there is more friendly to large banks..

HSBC is the world's fourth-largest bank by total assets, with $2.67 trillion worth of assets.