Disclaimer: All articles have official and reliable sources of information, which have been repeated in the article.
preface
In 2018, Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou was unjustifiably detained in Canada, and as the investigation deepened, HSBC, the "real culprit behind the scenes", surfaced, and it did not hesitate to sell its 20-year relationship with Huawei in order to cooperate with the United States in suppressing Chinese companies.
Meng Wanzhou finally returned to China safely, and HSBC, a century-old bank, went from evaporating its market value, large-scale layoffs to global strategic restructuring, which seemed to be a series of karmic retribution in the dark.
Why is HSBC willing to become a tool of political repression in the United States, and does not hesitate to betray its important customers? After the Meng Wanzhou incident, what kind of tragic price did HSBC, the "financial giant", suffer that is enough to make it regret it?
A "deed of sale"
A gentleman loves money and takes it in a good way, but HSBC, a once-powerful financial giant, seems to have forgotten this.
In 2012, a storm crept in, and the U.S. Department of Justice investigated and found that HSBC was suspected of laundering money for Mexican drug lords and even participating in the financing of international terrorism.
In the face of a strong investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice, HSBC was like a street rat pinched to the door, and had to obediently admit its guilt and pay a sky-high fine of up to $1.9 billion.
What's even more fatal is that HSBC was forced to sign a "deed of sale" "deferred prosecution agreement", which has since become the "secret weapon" of the US government, and must bow down to any investigation and be on call, otherwise it will face more severe criminal charges at any time.
In this way, this veteran financial giant, which has a history of more than 150 years, has become a pawn in the hands of the US government, and may be sacrificed on the chessboard of international politics at any time, and Huawei has unfortunately become a victim in this game.
HSBC and Huawei have been friends for 20 years, and the two sides have had countless business dealings, and they have known each other for a long time. How could HSBC, as its main partner bank, not know about Huawei's business situation in Iran?
However, under pressure from the United States, HSBC suddenly changed its face, claiming that it did not know about Huawei's relationship with Hong Kong Skycom, and even accused Meng Wanzhou of "deliberately concealing" relevant information, causing HSBC to be innocently involved in violating US sanctions against Iran.
This change is staggering, just like Lu Bu in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", who betrayed Ding Yuan and Dong Zhuo, and finally ended up with the reputation of "three family slaves", HSBC's approach is really despicable.
What is even more ridiculous is that when the matter was revealed, HSBC hurriedly cleared up the relationship, justifying that it was also a "victim" and "unaware" of the US approach.
It is such a bank that does not hesitate to sell its long-term partners in order to protect itself, pushing Huawei and Meng Wanzhou to the forefront, this kind of treacherous behavior is destined to attract serious commercial retaliation and moral condemnation, and the next development, HSBC may not have dreamed of.
The Waterloo of financial hegemons
When Meng Wanzhou returned home safely and the truth of the incident was revealed to the world, HSBC began its "darkest moment". In 2020, the once-formidable financial giant suddenly announced a shocking decision: laying off about 35,000 employees worldwide, or almost 15% of its total workforce.
This is not some petty "optimization of personnel structure", but a real large-scale layoff, like a wounded lion has to cut out its own claws in order to survive.
More strikingly, HSBC began to significantly reduce its European and American operations, forcing its strategic focus to shift to the Asia-Pacific region, this "turn back" posture can't help but make people feel uncomfortable, however, the Chinese market is not so easy to coax.
One after another, China's state-owned enterprises and large private enterprises have distanced themselves from HSBC and terminated their years of partnership, and these companies have invariably chosen domestic financial institutions or other more friendly foreign banks as alternatives, and HSBC's customers have been lost.
Ten years is not too late for a gentleman to take revenge, Chinese enterprises have shown HSBC what is called "businessman's memory" with practical actions, and this collective "severance of diplomatic relations" action is undoubtedly a salary draw for HSBC, after all, the Chinese market has always been an important source of profits.
In May 2020, the international rating agency Standard & Poor's suddenly announced a credit rating downgrade for HSBC, which was tantamount to a public slap in the face for an international bank, directly affecting its financing costs and market image.
A more symbolic blow came in 2021, when China's Ministry of Finance restarted the issuance of dollar-denominated treasury bonds, and HSBC was excluded from the list of lead underwriters, a business opportunity that was once seen as a "bag-in-a-bag" fell to Citibank.
From a financial hegemon to a market outcast, HSBC's experience is embarrassing, with companies that once scrambled to seek cooperation with HSBC now turning away, and government departments that once obeyed HSBC are now dismissive.
HSBC's ongoing predicament, which has been marginalized in a number of key Chinese financial projects and missed important opportunities to participate in the internationalisation of the renminbi and the Belt and Road Initiative, is undoubtedly a fundamental problem for an international bank with a foothold in the Asian market.
I have to say that HSBC really "kicked the iron plate" this time, it may not have expected that the price of betraying partners would be so heavy, this farce of digging its own grave is far from over, and more punishment may be yet to come.
Elaborate traps
When we turn our eyes back to the cold winter day of 2018, Meng Wanzhou's arrest is more chilling than expected, and as time goes on, an internal memo of the Canadian Intelligence Agency that should not be made public is inadvertently exposed, revealing the shocking conspiracy behind the arrest.
The FBI had already put the plan to arrest Meng Wanzhou on the agenda, and informed the Canadian side in advance that this was a temporary decision, and it was clearly a well-planned "fishing operation".
On November 30, 2018, a Canadian court quietly issued a provisional arrest warrant against Meng Wanzhou, and explicitly demanded "immediate execution", and the next day, when Meng Wanzhou's plane landed at Vancouver International Airport and was about to make a brief transfer, Canadian border officials who had already laid an ambush surrounded him like hunters, and an international "kidnapping" was staged.
What is even more staggering is that Meng Wanzhou was forced to hand over her mobile phone and password, and during the three-hour seizure, she was forced to ask questions related to the U.S. indictment without even being informed of any legal process, a practice that is blatantly illegal in the eyes of any country governed by the rule of law.
The whole process was like a well-choreographed script, with only one purpose: to illegally gather evidence for the FBI to use in the prosecution, and the Canadian Department of Justice and its top officials chose to remain silent and not interfere with these actions, knowing that these actions seriously violated Ms. Meng's basic rights.
How is this knowingly indulgent and direct involvement? In this way, a business executive from China was put in electronic shackles and began a life of "house arrest" for 1,028 days.
Meng Wanzhou was confined to a residence in Vancouver, closely monitored every day, and even went shopping accompanied by security guards.
Looking back on the whole incident, Canada has always advertised itself as only a neutral player in the implementation of the "extradition treaty", but in fact it has long become an accomplice of the political suppression of the United States.
When the Canadian government realized the seriousness of the situation, it was already in a dilemma: if it continued to cooperate with the United States, it would face strong countermeasures from China, and if it released the people, it would offend the "big brother" of the United States.
Canada's embarrassing situation is to some extent self-inflicted, but Huawei and Meng Wanzhou's response has shown admirable wisdom and calmness, they are not knocked down by the opponent's conspiracy, but began a more difficult legal counterattack, and finally ushered in the dawn of justice.
Reborn from the ashes
In the face of such a dangerous situation, Meng Wanzhou showed admirable tenacity and composure, and in the 1028 days and nights in Canada, Meng Wanzhou always maintained elegance and calmness, even if she wore humiliating electronic shackles on her ankles, she still smiled at every court appearance, and showed everyone's demeanor in her gestures.
When she attended the hearings many times, she always dressed appropriately and looked calm, as if she was just attending an ordinary business meeting, rather than a life-and-death game about personal freedom, and more admirable for her unwavering faith.
In the early days of her arrest, she initiated legal proceedings against the Canadian government, accusing her of violating her constitutional rights in the process of arrest.
At the same time, Huawei on the other side of the ocean has not been knocked down by this storm, as the so-called "misfortune and blessing rely on", the United States has become a catalyst for Huawei to accelerate self-reliance, in the extreme predicament of being included in the entity list and cutting off the supply of chips, Huawei adjusted its strategy and fully invested in the research and development of core technologies.
Ren Zhengfei, the founder of Huawei, said frankly in an interview: "Thank you to the United States for forcing us to go our own way," although this sentence is a bit ridiculous, but it shows Huawei's way of responding.
It is under this pressure that Huawei has accelerated its mastery of core technologies such as chip manufacturing, and has embarked on a new path of independent innovation from the "spare tire" plan to the actual product implementation.
On September 25, 2021, Meng Wanzhou finally ended the 1,028-day foreign predicament and returned safely to the embrace of the motherland on a Chinese government-chartered flight, and at the airport, she wore a red dress and walked down the gangway with vigor and waved to the waiting crowd, which has become an indelible memory in the hearts of countless Chinese.
The Meng Wanzhou incident has become a typical case of Chinese enterprises in the face of international hegemony, which has demonstrated to the world the indomitable resilience and determination of Chinese enterprises and Chinese people.
In this war without gunpowder, Huawei has proved with practical actions that no suppression can stop the pace of innovation of Chinese companies, and this turmoil, which lasted for nearly three years, not only did not destroy Huawei, but made the tech giant stronger and more resilient.
Today, Huawei not only continues to maintain its leading position in the field of communication equipment, but also makes remarkable achievements in emerging fields such as cloud computing and artificial intelligence, proving to the world with practical actions that the real strong are not without setbacks, but never give up in the face of setbacks.
Meng Wanzhou returned safely, Huawei was reborn from the ashes, and those forces that once tried to suppress Chinese companies had to re-examine their strategies and positions, and any attempt to block China's development would eventually fail.
epilogue
HSBC's betrayal of its partners in order to protect itself ultimately led to a double blow to the market and credibility, and it is also a warning to global companies that betraying integrity will eventually reap the consequences.
In the face of hegemonic suppression, Huawei and Meng Wanzhou's perseverance and self-improvement are exactly the posture that Chinese companies should have in international competition.
Resources
China Chemical Enterprise Management Association - International News! HSBC, which framed Huawei Meng Wanzhou, was officially removed from China!
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