KKR hires ex-HSBC chief

Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co has appointed Sir John Bond, the chairman of mobile phone giant Vodafone, as a senior advisor to the firm.

He was most recently group chairman of HSBC.

During his 45-year career at HSBC, he played an important role in the growth and development of its businesses worldwide, and particularly across Asia

As well as Vodafone, Bond is currently chairman of the Mayor of Shanghai’s International Business Leaders Advisory Council and a member of the China Development Forum, which meets annually in Beijing and provides advice to the Chinese Government.

He has been a member of the Hong Kong Chief Executive’s Council of International Advisers since 2002. He is also a member of the International Advisory Council to the Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management in Beijing. Recently Bond joined the board of Shui On Land, a major investor in property in the People’s Republic of China.

Henry Kravis, founding partner of KKR, said in a statement: “As a firm that operates on an international scale, it is critical that KKR is able to draw upon the vision and expertise of individuals who understand how to develop and manage business and government relationships globally.”

Kravis said the former banker’s knowledge and experience in the financial services sector as well as a global vision would be of enormous benefit to KKR and to its portfolio companies around the world.

Bond is the second HSBC banker to move to a private equity firm. John Studzinski, a former co-head of its investment banking business, recently joined Blackstone, where he heads its M&A advisory business.