An HSBC Bank Canada gift of $1.4 million, the single largest contribution
to UBC from a bank, will help the university realize its community
goals, UBC President Martha Piper said today.
“This generous gift will have a significant impact on advancing
UBC’s Trek 2000 vision of becoming Canada’s best university by strengthening
our ties to the local and global communities, and by broadening
learning opportunities for our students,” Piper said. “HSBC’s long-time
support has helped position UBC as a world leader in understanding
Asian society and culture. We are delighted with HSBC’s continued
confidence in UBC’s vision for the future.”
Martin Glynn, President and Chief Executive Officer of HSBC Bank
Canada, presented Piper with a cheque for the gift at the university’s
downtown campus, UBC at Robson Square, one of the three UBC initiatives
that will benefit directly from the gift.
Martin Glynn said, “At HSBC Bank Canada, we believe that support
for higher education is crucial for the future prosperity of Canada.
We are headquartered in Vancouver and many of our staff are UBC
graduates, including three who have served as President of the bank.
We hope that our gift will enable more people to attend UBC. This
is our way to say thank you to the community for supporting HSBC
Bank Canada over the last 21 years.”
UBC’s match of the HSBC gift makes available $2.8 million for community
and student financial assistance initiatives as follows:
- $1 million will contribute to the physical structure of UBC
at Robson Square, the university’s new downtown campus - $200,000 will assist the Learning Exchange to offer courses
to Downtown Eastside residents - $200,000 will go to the Liu Centre for the Study of Global Issues
for an HSBC Visiting Lecturer series at the Point Grey and Robson
Square campuses - In addition, $700,000 will be endowed for HSBC scholarships
and $700,000 will be endowed for HSBC bursaries for UBC undergraduate
and graduate students. The availability of significant financial
support is often the single most influential factor in choosing
a university for students with excellent qualifications.
HSBC Bank Canada, a subsidiary of HSBC Holdings plc, has more than
160 offices. With over 7,000 offices in 81 countries and territories
and assets of US$696 billion at 31 December 2001, the HSBC Group
is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organizations.
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