The co-head of HSBC's global banking division is stepping down after just 18 months in the job, reports the FT. Matthew Westerman, a Goldman Sachs veteran, will head out the door by the end of this month. In his brief time at HSBC he "became known for his demanding work ethic, including convening meetings before 6 o'clock in the morning, and a style variously described as 'abrasive' and 'direct'", the FT says. Westerman also cut the number of HSBC bankers allowed to talk to the media from 240 to just 30 globally. Westerman is understood to have told colleagues he had made the personal decision to leave, but does not have another job lined up. Despite expectations that the end of cash is nigh, a report from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco shows that, over the past decade, cash in circulation grew faster than GDP in most countries, including Australia and New Zealand. Some countries, including Mexico and South Korea, saw CIC outpace GDP by more than 100 percentage points. In Australia, cash in circulation rose by 81 per cent, compared with a 63 per cent increase in GDP (a difference of 17.7 per cent). The bank says low interest rates mean there is less incentive for people to keep their money in savings accounts or investments. If interest rates rise, people may cut back on the amount of cash they hold. The two countries bucking the trend are Norway and Sweden, where government initiatives have actively supported the move away from cash. In Sweden, there is now a cultural stigma against cash, which is associated with crime, reinforced by 2009 AML-CTF legislation which required police reports for large cash transactions.