News Release

WTAS Expands New York Office

14 December 2006

HSBC's Wealth and Tax Advisory Services business ('WTAS'), an independent (unaffiliated with an auditing institution) provider of tax, valuation, financial advisory and related consulting services, today announced that Barry Freeman and Jordan Bacon have joined as managing directors. These appointments are part of the business' expansion of its corporate tax and transfer pricing capabilities.  Based in New York, Freeman is an industry leader in transfer pricing and brings extra depth to the services provided by WTAS' international, multi-state and valuation practice areas.  Bacon is responsible for leading the international tax practice of WTAS in New York .

 "Barry has extensive client experience in a variety of industries as a result of his tenures at a top accounting firm and at the Federal Trade Commission," said Mark Vorsatz, chief executive officer of WTAS.  "His deep knowledge in the area of transfer pricing and related tax issues enables WTAS to offer a new level of specialized client solutions."

"Jordan's expertise in tax planning for global companies underscores WTAS' commitment to building a premier tax firm," added Mark Vorsatz.  "With these expanded capabilities, we can offer sophisticated tax services as an extra dimension to the financial services provided by HSBC to its corporate client base."

Also joining WTAS are Yelena Shlimova, manager, and James Tsai, senior associate. Diana Drits, Marley Guerrera, Aram Gummusyan, Clay Moorehead and Curtis Young join as associates. Since the beginning of the year, the New York office has expanded by over 30 percent.

WTAS is a member of the HSBC Group, one of the largest financial services corporations in the world.

Media Contacts

• Juanita Gutiérrez
• Juanita.gutierrez@us.hsbc.com
• HSBC - North America
• 212.525.6282