HSBC’s chief executive has denied planning to break-up the bank amid rising geopolitical tensions between China and the West.

Georges Elhedery, who took over in September, said a move to split the bank into Eastern and Western markets was not a precursor to breaking the 159-year-old institution in two. He said: “This is not either a precursor or an intent or a preparation for any split.

“This is very simply related to the fact we are making ourselves simpler, more agile. We have taken five regional governances down to two as part of the simplification drive.

“There is no geopolitical reason why we have done this and there is no intent whatsoever – or preparation – other than this just being a simpler way to deliver for our customers.”

HSBC’s decision to divide its business in two came after its largest shareholder, Ping An, last year demanded a spin-off of its Asian business, prompting speculation that Mr Elhedery could be teeing up such a move.

Lebanon-born Mr Elhedery, who speaks six languages including Mandarin, insisted that the change was only driven by operational considerations. HSBC is slimming down from five regional divisions into two, comprising its Eastern markets in China, Hong Kong and the Middle East and Western markets in the US and UK.

“The primary reason for this re-organisation is to make us a simpler, leaner organisation with faster decision-making, stronger empowerment of our front-line people being able to better serve our customers,” he said.

Rising tensions between China and the West have left HSBC walking a delicate tightrope, having to placate Chinese authorities in Hong Kong on the one hand and British and American officials on the other. Some have questioned how long this balance can hold.

The bank prompted widespread criticism in Britain last year after freezing the accounts of Hong Kong pro-democracy campaigners who had been blacklisted by Chinese authorities. HSBC said it was responding to requests from authorities and had to comply with the laws where it operated.

Mr Elhedery, HSBC’s former finance chief, was appointed by chairman Sir Mark Tucker to replace former chief Noel Quinn, who left in July after five years at the helm.

The 50-year-old is planning a sweeping overhaul of the bank’s bureaucratic structure, with a number of senior managers about to leave the organisation in the months ahead.

Mr Elhedery said: “There will inevitably be some deduplication of governance and therefore there will inevitably be a reduction of senior roles in the organisation.”

He refused to lay out how much the bank hoped to save from the senior manager exodus but said the plan would move “at pace”. More details are expected in February.