<div><p>HSBC Chief Executive Michael Geoghegan said Wednesday that tough new banking rules in the United States and Britain would have little impact on the financial services giant.</p><p>US President Barack Obama is calling for rules to limit "excessive" risk taking and to "protect" taxpayers by preventing banks or financial institutions from owning, investing in or sponsoring hedge fund or private equity funds.</p><p>Proposed measures in the UK include requiring banks to boost the amount of money they keep on hand to offset possible losses.Related article: ECB chief Trichet backs US bank plan</p><p>Geoghegan, who recently transferred from HSBC's London headquarters to the Asian financial hub, said the company's balance sheet was well capitalized with "surplus liquidity," adding that "I don't think it will affect us that much." </p><p>"What's been mentioned by President Obama and has come out already in the UK from the FSA (Financial Services Authority) are discussions, documents," Geoghegan told reporters in Hong Kong, according to Dow Jones Newswires.</p><p>"I would suspect when they actually become regulations they will be slightly different."</p><p>He also reiterated HSBC's plan to list in Shanghai, although China has not yet approved foreign company listings on the country's mainland.</p><p>"We would love to be listed in Shanghai, and the greatest homecoming possible is to be listed in Hong Kong and Shanghai this year," he said, according to Dow Jones Newswires.</p><p>"But obviously at the end of the day, it's down to the authorities in China to decide on what form of international banks or shares they want in Shanghai. I'm sure that will come at time," he said.</p><p>Geoghegan's comments come one day after HSBC Chairman Stephen Green lashed out at "inflated" bonuses to bankers, in an interview with the Financial Times.</p><p>Green said there had been "plenty of distortion" in bank pay which had given rise to "wrong and frankly inflated" bonuses.</p><p>Obama's plan, which was panned by Wall Street and sent stock markets into a freefall last week, must still be approved by Congress.</p><p>The US leader has blamed banks for sparking the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.</p><p>His government last year unveiled a multi-billion US dollar bailout plan to rescue financial institutions hammered by massive losses on the subprime mortgage market, the fallout from which plunged world economies into turmoil.</p><img src="http://admatch-syndication.mochila.com/images/ad.gif?aid=67875078&bid=informcom" /></div><div id="copyright"><div>

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