Vodafone names HSBC's Bond as chairman

LONDON (Reuters) - Vodafone Group Plc named HSBC banker John Bond as its new chairman on Monday, seeking to bring in a veteran deal maker to lead it through expected expansion in newer markets, especially in Asia.

Bond, who steps down as chairman at HSBC in May, will replace Ian MacLaurin, who is due to retire from the British-based mobile phone giant in July.

Bond, already a non-executive director at Vodafone, has worked in six countries in three continents and is known for shaking up HSBC's cautious lending approach via a slew of acquisitions. He joined HSBC at the age of 20 and has worked there 44 years.

Analysts said although Bond had limited knowledge of the telecoms industry, he had vast experience of managing a complex international group. HSBC, whose roots are in Asia, has operations in 77 countries.

Bond's stature and experience will come in handy as Vodafone looks to spread its brand in new markets, especially in Asia.

The world's biggest mobile phone company by market value has a 3.27 percent stake in China Mobile and recently acquired a 10 percent stake in India's Bharti group.Vodafone is keen to increase its presence in both countries.

Vodafone also faces one of its biggest challenges in Japan, where it has suffered from falling margins and lags rivals NTT DoCoMo and KDDI in subscriber numbers.

Analysts said Bond was unlikely to be an aggressive restructurer, and was more likely to seek to work with the current management team at Vodafone.

Bond, an Englishman, is widely credited with establishing HSBC as the world's third-largest bank and a global powerhouse.

"He (Bond) is an outstandingly successful international businessman and his track record at HSBC speaks for itself," Vodafone's outgoing chairman MacLaurin said in a statement.