UK Board Profiles

Mridul is a Non-Executive Director of HSBC Innovation Bank Limited and HSBC UK Bank plc, where she also chairs the Risk Committee. Mridul has been appointed as Chair of HSBC Innovation Bank Limited (subject to regulatory approval). Mridul's former appointments include: Member of the Ernst & Young LLP Public Interest Board and UK Audit Board; non-executive Director of the UK Municipal Bonds Agency and member of its Risk and Audit Committee; and senior roles at the Financial Reporting Council and HM Treasury, where she was Director of Financial Stability during the 2008 financial crisis and prior to that, Director of Public Spending.

Erin Platts is CEO, HSBC Innovation Banking UK and is responsible for leading, developing and scaling the Bank’s business across the UK and Nordics. HSBC Innovation Banking is a full-service UK subsidiary Bank with all local operations and functions under Erin’s leadership. Erin is well versed in scaling highly regulated businesses, is an active spokesperson for the ecosystem, and is experienced working across several global regulators. Erin also joined HSBC UK's Executive Committee in June 2023 and previously served on several external boards.

As a 20-year veteran of banking the innovation sector, Erin joined SVB Financial Group in 2004, relocated to the UK in 2007 and was most recently CEO of SVB UK from 2019 and until HSBC's acquisition in March 2023.

Along with the team she scaled the business to over 800 people across 6 countries and led through various successful banking licenses including transforming the UK operations to a standalone regulated subsidiary in 2022.

Erin is a well-connected and active champion of the global innovation economy and is a dual US and UK citizen. Under Erin’s leadership several external partnerships have been formed with HSBC Innovation Banking to advance the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion agenda in the local markets which include Career Ready, the Newton Venture Program, Diversity VC, Tech Nation, Founders Forum, & Atomico’s State of European Tech report.

In 2020, Erin was selected by Innovate Finance as a Top Women in Fintech under the Senior leader category and by Computer Weekly in the top 200 Most Influential Women in Tech. Erin earned a BA in Business Management and Entrepreneurial Studies from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts.

Tom joined HSBC Innovation Banking in April 2023 as Chief Financial Officer and is responsible for the financial management of the Bank and is also a member of the Board.

Tom is a Chartered Accountant with 25 years' experience in the financial industry and has spent over a decade at HSBC, most recently as HSBC UK's Head of Retail Banking.

Tom has held a number of finance leadership roles across HSBC including the CFO & Head of Strategy for the UK Wealth and Personal Banking business, Global CFO for HSBC Insurance and CFO for the Retail & Wealth business in MENA, based in Dubai. Prior to HSBC, Tom was an Audit Director at KPMG, specialising in Banking & Insurance clients across the world.

Tom has a degree in Econometrics from the University of Sheffield and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants England & Wales.

Astrid is an Independent Non-executive Director and Chair of the Risk Committees of HSBC Innovation Banking UK, Danske Bank UK and CAF Bank.

Prior to her portfolio career, Astrid has held various senior risk management positions in her 30 years career. She principally worked at Lloyds Banking Group and Deutsche Bank operating on a global basis, across investment and commercial banking. She has also designed and delivered large scale Transformation programs in technologies and organisational design for both groups.

Astrid is a dual French and Swedish national. She holds a B.A. in International Business Administration from the American University in Paris and an M.A. in International Affairs from S.A.I.S - Johns Hopkins University.

Helen is an experienced Audit Committee Chair in the UK and European financial services sector and currently serves on the Board and is Audit Chair of Aegon UK, Wefox group and LGT Foundation Board. Helen started her career with Price Waterhouse and qualified as a UK chartered accountant before working for QBE, GE Capital and Aviva in senior finance executive roles in Europe and Asia. Helen has a MA in Economics from the University of Cambridge.

John Hinshaw joined HSBC in December 2019 and was appointed Group Chief Operating Officer with effect from 1 February 2020. He is a member of the Group Executive Committee.

Mr Hinshaw has extensive experience of transforming and digitizing organisations in a wide range of industries. Before joining HSBC, he served on the Board of Directors of the Bank of New York Mellon (2014-2019) and chaired its Technology Committee. He also has served on the boards of Sysco Foods, DocuSign, and Illumio Inc.

From 2011-2016 he served as Executive Vice President of Hewlett Packard and Hewlett Packard Enterprise where he managed Technology and Operations and was Chief Customer Officer.

He has also held senior executive positions at Verizon and Boeing. He earlier served as a consultant with Accenture (then Andersen Consulting) and began his career as Computer Systems Manager for the American Embassies in Europe based in London.

Between 2012 and 2019, Mr Hinshaw served on the Board of Directors of the US-based non-profit National Academy Foundation (NAF) and chaired their STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) committee. NAF helps high-school students to prepare for college and their careers.

Mr Hinshaw has made several angel investments in technology start-ups in the areas of healthcare, HR technology, and food and beverages. He and his wife Julia are the majority owners of Blackbird Vineyards in Napa Valley, California. They have also established a charitable foundation with a focus on innovation in education and healthcare.

Mr Hinshaw holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in computer information systems from James Madison University and is a graduate of the G100 next generation leadership programme.

Stuart Tait was appointed Head of Commercial Banking UK in December 2021 and is responsible for HSBC UK’s relationships with 700,000 large, medium and small business clients.

He is a General Manager at HSBC Group, one of the world’s largest banking and financial organisations with assets of nearly US$3trillion, as 31 March 2023. Prior to his current role, Stuart was Regional Head of Commercial Banking for Asia Pacific, the leading international wholesale bank in the region and of the Group’s fastest-growing franchises.

Stuart has worked in financial services for over 30 years. He joined HSBC in 1984 as an International Manager and has held various positions in Commercial Banking, Global Banking and Markets, Retail Banking and Wealth Management, Human Resources and Risk. Previous assignments with HSBC have been based in various Asia markets, the Middle East, US, Canada and in the Group’s Head Office.

As General Counsel and Company Secretary for the UK, Jim Watts is responsible for HSBC Innovation Banking's legal function and provides company secretarial support to the UK Board. In both roles, Jim works closely with every team across the bank giving him a rewarding insight into the full spectrum of the organisation.

Prior to his role at HSBC Innovation Banking Jim had a varied career, starting in computer science and progressing to law. During his time as a Partner at Charles Russell Speechlys Jim focused on supporting innovation companies through M&A as well as VC and PE financing. Jim holds a BSc in Computer Science and Management from King's College London.