HSBC Private Bank has appointed Cecilia Smith - latterly of BNY Mellon - as senior vice president and relationship manager.

Smith is based in Miami and will be responsible for the bank's high net worth clientele in the South Florida area. She joins from BNY Mellon, where she served as senior director in the wealth management division. Prior to that, she held various key positions in the high net worth segment of Wachovia Bank. At HSBC, she reports to Victoria Garrigo, southeast regional manager of HSBC Private Bank.

South Florida is a strategic growth area for the private bank as it is home to the most exclusive high net worth real estate locations in the US. 

The bank recently announced that it is halting services to Americans living outside the US, saying that such clients are better served by private banking teams based in the country. This follows a government probe into the bank's offshore client affairs.