UK Board Profiles

Mridul is the Non-Executive Chair of HSBC Innovation Bank Limited and is a Non-Executive Director of HSBC UK Bank plc, where she also chairs the Risk Committee. 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.

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.

Catherine is an Independent Non-executive Director of HSBC Innovation Bank Limited, Alantra Partners SA and Cumulus Oncology Limited.

Catherine has 35 years of experience in the financial services industry, specialised in private capital markets, including technology investing. She is a former Chief Executive of the British Business Bank as well as its private credit and venture capital investment companies. Previously she was a partner with several European private equity firms, managing funds on behalf of institutional investors globally and advising Sovereign Wealth Funds on their private capital strategies.

Catherine was awarded a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) by His Majesty the King in the New Year Honours List 2025 for services to business and is a graduate of the London School of Economics where she completed a Master of Public Administration and a Bachelor of Science in Economics with First Class Honours.

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.