Skip to:

Teamwork through the decades: Middle East

Teamwork through the decades: Middle East
Back to All in a day's work

About this collection

Employees have always been at the heart of our success. These photographs shine a light on some of the teams who’ve helped shape our story in the Middle East. Our presence began in 1899 with the founding of the Imperial Bank of Persia in Tehran. By the 1920s, it had grown to 26 branches. From the 1940s, the bank expanded into new markets, opening offices in Kuwait (1942), Dubai (1946) and Oman (1948), before continuing to grow across the UAE and the wider region. In 1959, HSBC acquired the bank, which by then was known as the British Bank of the Middle East (BBME). Today, our teams across the Middle East combine deep local knowledge with HSBC’s global network—helping clients connect internationally through trade, payments and investment.

Employee images The British Bank of the Middle East (now HSBC Bank Middle East)

Records

Switch to grid view
Photograph of Imperial Bank of Persia staff in Tehran
Photograph of Imperial Bank of Persia staff in Tehran
Photograph of The Imperial Bank of Persia staff in Tehran
Photograph of The Imperial Bank of Persia staff in Tehran
Photograph of The Imperial Bank of Iran staff in Kuwait
Photograph of The Imperial Bank of Iran staff in Kuwait
Photograph of the staff of The British Bank of Iran and the Middle East branch in Dubai, Trucial States (UAE)
Photograph of the staff of The British Bank of Iran and the Middle East branch in Dubai, Trucial States (UAE)
Photograph of The British Bank of the Middle East staff in Manama, Bahrain
Photograph of The British Bank of the Middle East staff in Manama, Bahrain
Photograph of the staff of The British Bank of the Middle East branch in Khor Fakkan, Sharjah, Trucial States (UAE)
Photograph of the staff of The British Bank of the Middle East branch in Khor Fakkan, Sharjah, Trucial States (UAE)
Photograph of The British Bank of the Middle East staff in Saudi Arabia
Photograph of The British Bank of the Middle East staff in Saudi Arabia
Photograph of the staff at the main branch of The British Bank of the Middle East in Abu Dhabi, UAE (formerly Trucial States)
Photograph of the staff at the main branch of The British Bank of the Middle East in Abu Dhabi, UAE (formerly Trucial States)
Photograph of staff working in the current accounts department of The British Bank of the Middle East branch in Manama, Bahrain
Photograph of staff working in the current accounts department of The British Bank of the Middle East branch in Manama, Bahrain
Photograph of the staff of The British Bank of the Middle East branch in Deira, Dubai, UAE (formerly Trucial States)
Photograph of the staff of The British Bank of the Middle East branch in Deira, Dubai, UAE (formerly Trucial States)
Photograph of a small group of The British Bank of the Middle East staff in Qatar 
Photograph of a small group of The British Bank of the Middle East staff in Qatar 
Photograph of John Bond, HSBC Group Chairman, with employees of The British Bank of the Middle East in Muscat for the bank's 50th anniversary in Oman
Photograph of John Bond, HSBC Group Chairman, with employees of The British Bank of the Middle East in Muscat for the bank's 50th anniversary in Oman