HSBC wants 80-plus SIFIs

HSBC chairman Douglas Flint has declared he wants the Basel Committee to designate more than 80 banks around the world as "SIFIs" - systemically important financial institutions.

Such a large group would be all but certain to include Australia's Big Four banks, subjecting them to higher capital requirements or other penalties.

Until this month the list of SIFIs was expected to number about 15, with no Australians. The group was expected to concentrate on global giants such as HSBC, UBS, Citi, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank and BNP Paribas.

But there have been clear signs in recent weeks that global regulators are considering a larger group, possibly with several classes of SIFIs. The full list of SIFIs is should be drafted by mid-year.

Flint told a conference on Tuesday that a larger group of SIFIs was needed to avoid competitive distortions building up in the banking market, the Financial Times reports.

Flint's remarks are an apparent bid to ensure HSBC does not end up at a disadvantage to its major competitors under new global prudential rules. Deutsche Bank chief Josef Ackermann has already said he opposes creating any list of SIFIs.