MPs today asked Wimbledon to suspend relations with HSBC because the tournament’s banking partner is “complicit in persecution and human rights violations.”
Members of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Hong Kong in the House of Commons cited HSBC’s support for China’s draconian security law.
The bank, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange and has £2.5 trillion in assets spread across 64 countries, makes the majority of its money in Hong Kong.
According to The Telegraph, the MPs’ letter to Wimbledon chief executive Sally Bolton adds, “This year, on the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover to China, we must show Hongkongers that they are not alone, and that those who support their persecution will not benefit from doing so.”
Ms. Bolton supports dissolving the collaboration and has lobbied colleagues at the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) to support her.
HSBC’s support for the Hong Kong crackdown, she argued, makes it “complicit in egregious human rights violations in the city.”
‘The AELTC encapsulates some of Wimbledon’s very greatest ideals of integrity and respect,’ she wrote in her letter to the organisation.
HSBC has announced a new sponsorship arrangement with Emma Raducanu, a 19-year-old British model.
‘Getting financial help from a bank that profits from human rights violations is a stain on that great reputation.’
Pro-democracy protestors assaulted HSBC cash machines in Hong Kong after the bank spoke out in favor of legislation that would place the self-governed city under Chinese rule.
After huge protests, the contentious bill was passed in 2021, allowing closed-door court cases.
A new Chinese law enforcement body in Hong Kong that is only answerable to Beijing is another contentious element.
In cases where the two laws conflict, Chinese law now takes precedence.
Labour MP for Mitcham and Morden Siobhan McDonagh and ex-Green Party leader Baroness Bennett are among the signatories of the MPs’ letter.
After protesters spoke out against the bank’s ties to the Hong Kong security law last year, Wimbledon rebuffed requests to sever its lucrative sponsorship arrangement with the bank.
Emma Raducanu, a tennis champion, recently announced a new agreement with HSBC.