HSBC strikes deal to buy Household

Banking giant HSBC today struck a €14bn deal to buy credit firm Household International, owner of the HFC and Beneficial brands.

Household, based in the United States, provides consumer loans, credit cards and auto finance to more than 50 million customers.

It has large operations in the US, where it is the second largest third-party issuer of private label credit cards, and eighth largest issuer of MasterCard and Visa credit cards.

The group also has operations in Canada, where it runs 110 branches in 10 provinces.

In the UK and Ireland, it has more than 200 branches operating under the HFC and Beneficial brand names, where it provides consumer loans, retail finance and credit cards.