HSBC is left out of China’s first dollar bond trade since 2017

Photographer: Nathan Laine / Bloomberg

HSBC Holdings Plc was left off the list of banks organizing the sale of Chinese sovereign debt for the first time since the nation returned with big annual deals in 2017.

Planned for this week, the $ 6 billion sale will be organized by 13 banks, including four Chinese lenders and foreign banks such as Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc. and Standard Chartered Plc, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified when discussing private information. The Finance Ministry did not immediately respond to a fax seeking comment.

The reason for HSBC’s omission was unclear, but the London-based lender’s relationship with China has grown increasingly strained. The bank has been criticized by the Chinese media for its role in the US investigation of Huawei Technologies Co. and criticized for not coming out quickly enough in support of Hong Kong’s new security law.

Last month, the ruling Communist Party’s Global Times newspaper reported that the bank, which views Hong Kong as its largest market, could be included in a list of “untrustworthy entities” that aims to punish companies that damage the economy. China’s national security.

A Hong Kong-based HSBC spokesperson said the bank would not comment on specific deals. “As a leading foreign bank in issuing G3 debt in mainland China, HSBC is committed to supporting our clients and opening up China’s capital markets,” he said, adding that “we have a good working relationship with” the Ministry. Finance.