HSBC Global Investment Summit
An award-winning financial summit campaign, shaped by strategy, scaled across eleven markets.
Elevating a global summit into a super-connected experience
In March 2025, the HSBC Global Investment Summit returned to Hong Kong, bringing together over 3,000 delegates and 70+ world-class speakers for three days of insight, influence and global connectivity.
And the impact spoke for itself. The campaign went on to win three industry awards: two Lovies and one ICMA, recognising the event activation and content-led approach.
The challenge: raising the benchmark for a milestone year
Following the success of the inaugural summit, HSBC set the bar high. For 2025, marking its 160-year milestone, the ambition was clear. Go bigger. Go bolder. Go beyond expectations.
An exclusive guest list of global leaders, institutional investors and decision-makers returned to Hong Kong to explore three themes: innovation, finance and trade, and influence.
Our task was to evolve the creative platform and orchestrate a joined-up, global campaign that connected every touchpoint, before, during and after the summit. Not just hosting an event, but positioning HSBC as the ultimate super-connector, powering a global nexus of opportunity.
This year, we wanted to do more than inform. We set out to inspire, intrigue and elevate.
The solution: insight-led creativity designed to resonate
We started with the audience. Not just who they are, but how they engage with the world.
From media habits to cultural signals, we built a detailed view of audience behaviour. That insight became the system. It aligned channel strategy, content, comms and on-the-ground experience into one connected journey, built to scale across markets and teams while staying consistent in tone, craft and intent.
Every touchpoint was intentional. Considered. Designed to cut through.
We benchmarked against other global events to ensure HSBC’s summit felt distinctive, contemporary and globally relevant. The result was a campaign that positioned GIS25 not just another event, but a new era of global connectivity.
The results: HSBC’s most engaged summit to date
Reach wasn’t enough. We needed resonance.
Through a joined-up approach across earned, owned and paid, plus content and comms designed to work as one system, the campaign delivered measurable global impact:
- #1 Global event hashtag on LinkedIn
Exceeded last year’s benchmark - +175% increase in earned media coverage
Year on year across 11 global markets - 45 media outlets in attendance
+13% year on year - 156 journalists on site
+73% year on year - 3,016 earned media articles published
+51% year on year - 18 Bloomberg interviews conducted on site
+350% year on year
Award-winning impact
Our work for HSBC Global Investment Summit 2025 picked up three industry awards:
- Gold, Best B2B Content Campaign (ICMA25)
- Bronze, Best Event Activation Campaign (The Lovies 25)
- People’s Choice award (The Lovies 25)
Together, the awards recognise both sides of the work: a content-led strategy that performed, and an event activation that cut through.
Behind the scenes: from strategy to summit floor
We caught up with Senior Account Director Cole Procter fresh from Hong Kong to unpack how it all came together, and what it really takes to deliver a global event at this scale.
