SABB Final Dividend 2003

HSBC Holdings PLC
19 December 2003


The following news release was issued today by The Saudi British Bank, a 40 per
cent indirectly-held associate of HSBC Holdings plc.

THE SAUDI BRITISH BANK RECOMMENDS DIVIDEND OF SAR11 (US$2.93) PER SHARE FOR THE
                              SECOND HALF OF 2003

The Board of Directors of The Saudi British Bank has recommended a final net
dividend for 2003 of SAR11 (US$2.93) per share.

This follows the payment in August 2003 of an interim dividend of SAR9 (US$2.4)
net per share, making a total net dividend for 2003 of SAR20 (US$5.33) per share
compared to SAR16 (US$4.26) in 2002.

The final net dividend for 2003 of SAR11 (US$2.93) per share will be distributed
to shareholders upon approval of the Board's recommendations at the bank's
Annual General Meeting.

Total gross dividends for 2003 will amount to SAR832 million (US$222 million)
which represents an increase of 25 per cent over the total gross dividends
distributed in 2002.

Sheikh Abdullah Al Hugail, chairman of The Saudi British Bank, said: "The
increase in the dividend distribution is a result of the bank's continuous
efforts to grow return on shareholders funds. It also reflects recent successes,
including the winning of two Euromoney awards, 'Best Bank in Saudi Arabia' and '
Best Equity House in Saudi Arabia', and the successful management of the Saudi
Telecom Company (STC) IPO in 2003."

Note to editors:

HSBC Holdings plc

The Saudi British Bank is a 40 per cent, indirectly-held associate of HSBC
Holdings plc which, with over 9,500 offices in 79 countries and territories, and
assets of US$983 billion at 30 June 2003, is one of the world's largest banking
and financial services organisations


                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange