HSBC is running the slide-rule over its direct and digital agency roster as part of a statutory review which the bank says is designed to “ensure we are working with the best partners in the industry”.
The high street bank’s CRM account has been held by TMW Unlimited since 2013, while it has also used the likes of McCann Birmingham, Wunderman Thompson, Possible, We Are Social, and Geometry Global among others.
HSBC’s most recent advertising campaign – devised by JWT prior to its merger with Wunderman – was entitled “We are not an island”, and was designed to celebrate elements of British life that are indebted to the nation’s connections to the wider world. It followed the 2018 ads featuring comedian Richard Ayoade, who flagged up HSBC’s internationalist vision and introduced a global tagline: “Together we thrive.”
However, the activity sparked uproar among Brexiteers, who claimed the bank was taking an anti-Brexit stance. In response, the bank claimed the campaign was about “reinforcing our strong belief that the things that make us quintessentially British are the things that make us inescapably international”.
Last year, HSBC moved its global media business from Mindshare, which had run the account for over 13 years, to PHD.
In a statement, the bank said: “HSBC UK periodically reviews its agencies to ensure we are working with the best partners in the industry to support our strategic goals to be where the growth is, connecting customers to opportunities and enabling businesses to thrive and economies to prosper.”
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