A file photo of the HSBC Tower, London, the headquarters of HSBC group. [Photo: baidu.com]

Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) Norman Chan said on Monday that the HKMA respects the decision of HSBC Holdings to keep its headquarters in London.

The HKMA appreciates that for a large international bank such as HSBC, relocation of domicile is a very major and complicated undertaking, Chan said, in response to HSBC board's decision, which was announced following a meeting in London to review a potential move that could have shifted the group's base to Hong Kong.

Chan stressed that Hong Kong is the premier banking and financial hub in Asia, with all but one of the 30 Global Systemically Important Banks operating in Hong Kong.

"We note that the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, which is headquartered in Hong Kong, has all along been the biggest source of profits for the HSBC Group, which will continue to use Hong Kong as the headquarters to grow and develop its business in the Asia Pacific region, including the major business investment plans in the Pearl River Delta," he added.