Paulo Maia feels pretty fortunate to be living in yet another of the world's best cities.
Prior to becoming the new CEO of HSBC Bank Canada in January, the 54-year-old Brazilian was head of HSBC's Australian operations for three and a half years.
"Other people in the [HSBC] group were asking, 'How did you manage to go from Sydney to Vancouver, two of the most fantastic places?'" he recalled, talking to Business in Vancouver in his third-floor office in the HSBC Building in downtown Vancouver. "I've been very fortunate to come to Canada and be based in Vancouver."
Canada is the fifth country Maia has worked in during his 30-year career in banking. He first joined HSBC in 1993 as a director of corporate finance in Brazil and later moved to London as senior manager of emerging markets.
In 1997, he returned to Brazil as part of the bank's team involved in the acquisition of a major regional bank and served as the executive director of each of the bank's key business segments before becoming deputy CEO. In mid-2009, he was appointed CEO of HSBC Bank Australia.
Prior to joining HSBC, Maia was involved in corporate finance and banking for Chase Manhattan Bank in New York, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.
The moves around the world have created a global family. While his wife and two daughters moved with him earlier in his career, his oldest daughter now lives in Australia. His youngest came with Maia and his wife to Vancouver, "And we did complement the family with a new Canadian member – a puppy."
The good fortune of moving to two of the world's most livable cities likely comes with some high expectations from Maia's global superiors. His predecessor, Lindsay Gordon, who retired in January, noted that the Canadian bank has been one of the top five performers in the group for a number of years – "which is notable because Canada is the 10th largest economy in the world, so in a sense, we out-punch our weight here relative to the global economy."
From 2009 to 2012, profits at HSBC Bank Canada increased nearly 50% and top-line revenue remained relatively stable. This performance has come while the bank has been transforming itself by selling off operations that were no longer seen as part of its core businesses of commercial banking, global banking and markets and retail banking and wealth management.
While it might appear to be unusual to have a major Canadian bank headed by a foreigner, Maia's appointment will help to emphasize the bank's international focus. "The success of HSBC comes from the international differentiator," said Gordon, who remains involved with HSBC as a board member of the bank in France and is an independent member of the bank's global commercial-banking risk-management committee.
"Although I'd like to think I had an international outlook and was certainly well connected to my HSBC colleagues around the world, my entire 25 years at HSBC was spent in Canada. To be honest, that's a bit unusual. If I had to pick one significant advantage that Paulo brings to the table, it's that international experience he's had."
Maia noted the bank has a robust global system of mapping executive talent and usually has international managers benchmarked with equivalent local talent.
"In Australia, I replaced an Australian and an Australian replaced me when I left. In Brazil, when I left, an American replaced me there. It's part of our culture to promote globally throughout our business. It's in our DNA."
Gordon said Maia's global perspective has also influenced how he manages his team.
"He's a very calm, focused individual. He was very open to listening to both myself and his executive colleagues [during the transition]. He did not come in with the attitude of, 'Look, this is the way I've done it in the places I've worked before.' So, he's brought an openness and focus, and I think an empathy."
Maia continues to deepen his connections in the Canadian operation and in the Canadian market, regularly criss-crossing the country and getting used to "the shuttle" between Vancouver and Toronto.
The Canadian economy has shown worrying signs of slowing, half a decade after the start of the global financial crisis. Various commodity markets are well off their highs, affecting some of the key resource industries in the country. The relatively high Canadian dollar continues to affect the country's manufacturers, and Canada's housing market, particularly in Vancouver and Toronto, has shown signs of over-building. But none of these issues are new for Maia, who had to deal with similar concerns while in Australia. Profits at HSBC in Australia grew for much of his tenure at the bank there despite the challenges, and in Brazil, he was a key player in building HSBC's commercial banking business there.
While debates continue to rage over the health of Canada's housing market, Maia said Canada's market remains solid relative to other markets.
"People look at the real- estate market in Canada and say, 'There's a bubble here, bubble there,' but you have a situation where there's still demand for houses in general in Canada, financing terms are quite reasonable. So we haven't seen in our business any major issues in terms of systemic risk. You still have relatively low levels of loan-to-value ratios."
Risks to Canada's economy continue, but Maia sees a number of opportunities for the bank. For example, while Australia has had the benefit and risk of having China as its largest trading partner, Canadian companies are likely to benefit from investments in Canada's Asia Pacific Gateway and an improving economy in the U.S.
Maia said the bank will be tapping export-related opportunities leveraging the bank's global programs and services in Canada in areas such as trade finance, international payments and cash management, receivables financing and foreign exchange.
"We are also strengthening our debt advisory capabilities. Foreign exchange is a major area for us. In Canada, we reached the top-five position on the league tables for corporate foreign exchange," said Maia. "These are all areas where I think there is significant growth potential here in Canada."
