HSBC closing its Carmel office, 600 jobs lost

Bad news for Central Indiana:

About 600 workers will be out of jobs by June after banking giant HSBC announced Tuesday that it will close its Carmel office because of a decline in its mortgage business.

London-based HSBC told employees late last week it would close its Carmel office near the Meridian corridor, company spokesman Michael Trevino said. That office, which opened in 2000 and had experienced steady growth since, specializes in nationwide mortgage sales and employs a smaller underwriting and collections staff.

"What we're trying to do is match our capacity to business volumes," Trevino said, "particularly in the mortgage services business."

Employees will be given the opportunity to apply for other jobs within HSBC or be offered a severance package, Trevino said.

Carmel Mayor Jim Brainard was surprised to learn the news Tuesday night. Fortunately, he said, Carmel has a long track record of attracting high-paying jobs along its Meridian corridor.

"This is regrettable, but we have a lot of other businesses moving into Carmel," Brainard said. "This is the nature of our system, and we're sure there will be other companies that will come in and replace these jobs."