The head of public affairs at HSBC will reportedly exit the bank after making disparaging comments about the UK government’s handling of its relationship with China.

According to Bloomberg, Sherard Cowper-Coles will step down from his role next month after accusing the UK government of being "weak" and allowing itself to be strong-armed by the US into cutting back business dealings with China at a closed-door meeting in June.

The executive, a former British diplomat who has been with the bank since 2013, reportedly told attendees that the UK often bows down to demands from Washington, and that the UK government should instead be focused on looking after its own country's interests.

Rising geopolitical tensions between China and the US have caused friction among trading partners, with both superpowers falling back into more protectionist approaches to trade, manufacturing and technology.

Cowper-Coles’s comments were initially reported last month, with the exec offering an apology shortly after. He said: "I was speaking at a private event under Chatham House Rule and my personal comments don't reflect the views of HSBC or the China-Britain Business Council. I apologise for any offence caused."

However, this did not stop members of the Conservative government, including former party leader Ian Duncan Smith, from going after Cowper-Coles, with backbencher Tim Loughton describing HSBC as an "apologist for the Chinese government."

A pair of influential US and British lawmakers in June accused HSBC of contributing to the oppression of people in Hong Kong by thwarting their attempts to access pension funds in an effort to emigrate.

HSBC is yet to comment on the reports of Cowper-Coles’s departure, and the exact reason for his exit is unclear.

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