Independencia, a specialist lender to low income Mexican families with more than 1 million clients — read as Subprime — is on their own. HSBC Holdings Plc said on Thursday it is selling its entire 18.68 percent stake in Mexican consumer lender Financiera Independencia to JPMorgan for 1.568 billion pesos (USD$145 million). If the Household Model, named for predatory lender Houshold International, had worked for HSBC things would be different. Instead of selling, HSBC would have been positioned to buy the operation. The world credit crisis showed flaws in the Household Model. It is not sustainable.

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HSBC Holdings PLC isn’t interested in buying Morgan Stanley, a person familiar with the bank said Friday. “HSBC has made clear in the past that buying an investment bank is not on its agenda,” the person added. “HSBC feels Morgan Stanley is not worth pursuing.” It appears as though HSBC is not interested in anything in the United States, although rumors involved HSBC interest in just about everything. Wachovia, Lehman, Morgan Stanley — you name it, and HSBC’s interest has been discussed. Has HSBC turned its back on America, or is it possible that HSBC would receive so much opposition and regulatory scrutiny that the bank doesn’t want to take the risk?

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HSBC needs every dime, dollar, pound, and pence they can make. It appears as though HSBC is saving money by forgetting to date their credit card offers, but you can be the judge: “Last year, I applied for a Best Buy RewardZone MasterCard, for which I was told, and the paperwork confirmed, that there would be NO ANNUAL FEE. So much to my surprise my first statement came with a $59 annual fee. Customer service was of no help here either. They just said it was their policy to charge an annual fee, and the paperwork I had was outdated. I didn’t see any “expiration date” on the brochure I was given when I applied, and I though “bait and switch” was illegal. Only after much complaining did they offer to waive HALF the fee. I rejected their “generous” offer, I applied for a NO ANNUAL FEE card, and if you’re not willing to supply that than I don’t want your card and asked that it be closed.” (see full report)

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How bad are foreclosures at HSBC Finance? I thought people were getting a lot of phone calls, judging by the reports and complaints we receive. Some idiots, like NovaStar, were calling home owners early in the month, even before the payments were due. I thought these subprime lenders were checking to see if the person even lived there any more. Add HSBC to the list of offensive idiots. “They also call me at work and ask me when I am making my payment. I tell them my payment is not even due yet and then they ask me if I intend to keep my property?” (see full complaint)

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We saw this on September 16th: “Investment banks must move quickly to strengthen their balance sheets and address their lack of funding if they are to come out of the current financial crisis unscathed, a senior banker at HSBC has warned.” A warning from HSBC? Acting like a global authority HSBC fails to remember that their own subprime units — HSBC Finance and Decision One Mortgage — facilitated, financed, or bought subprime loans at a fast pace. Unfortunately HSBC slammed on the brakes too late. The net result was that HSBC in the United States was one of the largest subprime financing operations. Tainted paper went into the system, SIV’s were effected, and bonds were sold.

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