"You're trying to second-guess politicians and as an investor, that's a really bad position to be in, " says Alec Letchfield, head of U.K. equities for HSBC Global Asset Management in London.

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In December Merrill Lynch and HSBC launched the research portion of a joint online asset management service in the U.K. The joint venture plans to add the transactional portion this spring and then expand into continental Europe.

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Unlike British banks, HSBC and Barclays, Allied Irish did not get a boost from buoyant investment bank earnings, with revenues from asset management, investment banking and wealth management all down.

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HSBC's emerging markets strategy has not gone without criticism, notably from loudmouth shareholder Eric Knight of Knight Vinke Asset Management in New York.

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