HSBC to sell New York HQ for 330 mln dlrs

HONG KONG — HSBC said Monday it will sell its New York headquarters for 330 million dollars as the bank seeks to raise money from property sales.

It will lease back the building after the sale to IDB Group, an Israeli holding company, the bank said in a statement.

HSBC, Europe's biggest bank, is looking to bolster its finances after suffering losses from the consequences of the US housing crisis.

In August it reported first-half net profits slumped by 57 percent to 3.35 billion dollars (2.35 billion euros) as bad debts ballooned to nearly 14 billion dollars.

The bank is also looking at selling and leasing back its Canary Wharf headquarters in London and office buildings in Paris, Dow Jones reported last month, quoting a company spokesman.