HSBC has appointed Paras Jain as its global head of technology, media and telecommunications investment banking, with a start date in November. According to reports from Reuters, the London-headquartered bank has hired the seasoned investment banker to expand its TMT franchise. Jain will be based in New York and will report to Jan Laubjerg, the bank's global head of sectors coverage. The move comes as HSBC seeks to leverage its roughly $3.4 trillion balance sheet, one of the largest in global banking, to drive financing tied to the buildout of artificial intelligence infrastructure in the United States.
Jain brings six years of experience from Cantor Fitzgerald, where he helped build the technology investment banking group. As reported by Reuters, before joining Cantor, Jain held technology banking roles at Macquarie Group and Morgan Stanley. The hiring represents HSBC's strategy to focus on financing areas with greater competitive strength, particularly in the technology sector. HSBC and Cantor Fitzgerald declined to comment on the appointment.
The appointment comes as HSBC seeks to leverage its roughly $3.4 trillion balance sheet to drive financing tied to artificial intelligence infrastructure buildout in the United States. According to Reuters, the bank aims to expand its market share in M&A and capital markets in technology, media and telecom sectors in Asia and the Middle East. Five AI hyperscalers are expected to spend just over $800 billion this year, increasing to $1.1 trillion next year according to Goldman Sachs. This creates a substantial pipeline for loans and bond deals, aligning with HSBC's shift toward financing-led activities.
Jain's appointment follows HSBC's announcement in 2025 to wind down most of its M&A advisory and equity capital markets businesses in the US, Britain and Europe as part of a broader restructuring. As reported by Reuters, the bank is shifting toward a more financing-led model focused on areas where it has greater scale and competitive strength, while retaining financing businesses including debt capital markets, leveraged finance and infrastructure finance. The move represents a strategic pivot from fee-only advisory work to more profitable financing activities that generate net interest income and underwriting fees, though it also requires deploying regulatory capital against the increased risk-weighted assets.
