Innovative Vaccine Investment ISA will help save children's lives

March 3, 2009 – Investors are being offered an opportunity to save money and help save lives with a new Vaccine Investment ISA which aims to raise £50 million to vaccinate children in the world’s poorest countries.

Every £1,000 invested will help immunise more than 130 children against five life-threatening diseases. As well as the Vaccine Investment ISA there is a Vaccine Investment Plan for those who have used or are not entitled to an ISA allowance for amounts up to £999,999. The minimum investment is £1,000.

The funds raised by the International Finance Facility for Immunisation (IFFIm) will be used by the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI Alliance), a public-private partnership to support vaccination programmes in 70 developing countries.

“This is not a donation. It’s an investment opportunity with an ethical bonus. The money will be used for GAVI’s immunisation programmes which will set up millions of the world’s poorest children for a healthy life. What could be a more rewarding investment than that?” said Dr Julian Lob-Levyt, CEO of the GAVI Alliance.

HSBC, in collaboration with IFFIm, the GAVI Alliance and the World Bank, designed the innovative Vaccine Investment Plan and Vaccine Investment ISA offered by HSBC that aims to provide a fixed return of 16.2 %, together with the original capital repaid in full at the end of the fixed five year one month term.

With the World Bank acting as its Treasury Manager and managing IFFIm’s finances, IFFIm has raised more than US$1.6 billion to support GAVI immunisation programmes since 2006. IFFIm has triple-A rating due to the support of seven governments led by the UK, who have pledged to contribute money over 20 years. The proceeds of these pledges are used, among other things, to repay the initial investments plus the fixed return.

Stephen Green, Group Chairman of HSBC said: “We are proud to be able to offer this innovative investment opportunity while also supporting a most worthwhile humanitarian cause. By raising funds for GAVI’s immunisation programmes through IFFIm, we will be helping to save and protect a large number of lives in the poorest countries of the world.”

International Development Secretary of the UK, Douglas Alexander said: "The economic downturn could push millions of people into extreme poverty and cause the deaths of up to 2.8 million children. Innovative initiatives like this are vital if we are to prevent this financial crisis from becoming a human crisis. That is why Gordon Brown is leading a new Taskforce on Innovative International Financing for Health Systems, to help save the lives of many millions more."

Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Stephen Timms MP said: "I am pleased we have been able to ensure that IFFIm bonds can be made available through an ISA. This will enable investors looking for ethical returns to benefit from the tax advantages of ISAs and increase funding for life saving vaccines in developing countries. I congratulate all involved in this initiative"The Vaccine Investment Plan and Vaccine Investment ISA are the first initiatives of their kind in the UK to raise funds from personal investors and pay them a competitive return for their funds whilst protecting children in the world’s poorest countries from life-threatening diseases.

The Vaccine Investment Plan and Vaccine Investment ISA will be available through HSBC on a non advised basis from 2 March to 24 April. For more information go to hsbc.co.uk/vaccine, or call HSBC on 0800 328 1293, visit any HSBC branch for a full application pack.

These materials are not an offer for sale of securities. The securities referred to herein have not been registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act. The issuer does not intend to register any part of the offering in the United States or to offer or sell any of the securities in the United States.

The Vaccine Investment Plan and Vaccine Investment ISA are offered by HSBC Trust Company (UK) Limited. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.

Notes to Editors:

1. Saving lives through Vaccine Bonds
Funds raised by IFFIm’s “Vaccine Bonds” will be used for health and immunisation programmes through the GAVI Alliance in 70 of the world’s poorest countries. Every year 27 million infants are not vaccinated against the most common childhood diseases. As a result, between 2 and 3 million children die annually from easily preventable diseases. Many more fall sick, miss school and become part of the vicious cycle that links poor health to continued poverty in adulthood. With funds that IFFIm raises in the international capital markets and which will be disbursed until 2015 to the GAVI Alliance, it is estimated that an additional 500 million people will be vaccinated against preventable diseases, saving 5 million children’s lives. To achieve this goal, IFFIm is expected to provide a total
of US$4 billion to the GAVI Alliance.

2. HSBC Bank plc
HSBC in the UK: HSBC serves 15.6 million customers in the UK and employs approximately 58,000 people. In the UK, HSBC offers a complete range of personal, premier and private banking services, commercial banking for small to media businesses and corporate and institutional banking services. HSBC is Britain's most recommended big bank, and a wholly owned subsidiary of HSBC Holdings plc. HSBC Holdings plc, the parent company of the HSBC Group, is headquartered in London. The Group serves customers worldwide from more than 9,500 offices in 85 countries and territories in Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, the Americas, the Middle East and Africa. With assets of US$2,547 billion at 30 June 2008, HSBC is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organisations. HSBC is marketed worldwide as ‘the world’s local bank.’

3. GAVI Alliance
The GAVI Alliance (formerly the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation) is a public-private partnership that aims to boost immunisation programmes in more than 70 developing countries. It brings together developing country and donor governments, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the World Bank, the vaccine industry in both industrialised and developing countries, research and technical agencies, NGOs, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other private philanthropists. WHO projections from 2000 to 2008 show that through GAVI support 213 million children have been vaccinated. This will prevent more than 3.4 million premature deaths. GAVI provides vaccines against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis (DTP) combined with haemophilus influenzae type b and hepatitis B as so-called pentavalent (five antigens in one vaccine). Other vaccines funded by GAVI combat measles, yellow fever, pneumococcal diseases (pneumonia and meningitis) and rotavirus (diarrhoea). For more information, please visit: www.gavialliance.org

4. IFFIm
The International Finance Facility for Immunisation Company (IFFIm) is a multilateral development institution created to accelerate the availability of predictable, long-term funds for health and immunisation programmes through the GAVI Alliance in 70 of the poorest countries around the world. IFFIm was created as a development financing tool to help the international community achieve the Millennium Development Goals. IFFIm’s financial base consists of legally binding grants payments from its sovereign sponsors (France, Italy, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Sweden and the
UK), on the basis of which IFFIm issues bonds in the international capital markets. IFFIm is currently rated AAA/Aaa/AAA by Fitch Ratings Limited (“Fitch”), Moody’s Investors Service Inc. (“Moody’s”) and Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services (“S&P”). IFFIm was established as a charity with the Charity Commission for England and Wales and is registered in England and Wales as a company limited by guarantee with number 5857343 and as a charity with number 1115413. For more information, please visit: www.iff-immunisation.org

5. World Bank
The World Bank is a global development cooperative owned by 185 member countries. Its purpose is to help its members achieve equitable and sustainable economic growth in their national economies and to find effective solutions to pressing regional and global problems in economic development and environmental sustainability. The goal is to help overcome poverty and improve standards of living for people worldwide. The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), rated Aaa/AAA (Moody’s/S&P), is the oldest and largest entity in the World Bank Group and provides funding, risk management tools and credit enhancement to sovereigns. To fund this activity, IBRD has been issuing debt securities in the international capital markets for 60 years. The World Bank is also the Treasury Manager for the International Finance Facility for Immunisation (IFFIm). In that capacity, the World Bank, as IFFIm’s agent, manages IFFIm’s finances according to prudent policies and standards. The World Bank also coordinates with IFFIm’s donors and manages their pledges and payments as well as IFFIm’s disbursements for immunisation and health programmes through the GAVI Alliance. For more information, please visit: www.worldbank.org