HSBC says it pays for employees to undergo sex reassignment treatment to “be their authentic selves.”

HSBC says it pays employees to undergo sex reassignment treatment.

Bosses want trans and non-binary employees to “be their true authentic selves.”

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The bank’s UK Pride team sent an internal memo this week informing them of the new Gender Dysmorphia Benefit.

Beginning early next year, HSBC will cover diagnostics, mental health treatments, hormone counseling, speech therapy, hair removal and surgery for workers.

The bank defines gender dysmorphia “as a person who is not biologically sex matched and is a recognized disease”.

Employees, their partners, and their children under the age of 21 can apply to have their gender reassignment surgeries paid for by the bank.

There are treatment exclusions for children under 18 years of age.

HSBC said, “We hope that by providing access to gender affirmation treatment, our trans and non-binary colleagues and their loved ones will be able to be their true, authentic selves.”

NatWest said in August it would pay for transgender workers to receive privately funded hormone treatment.

Since 2017, HSBC has stated that it does not require proof of customers changing their gender and has included the titles Mx, M, Mre and Misc to “reflect the financial needs of the trans community”.

HSBC announced in July that it would stop collecting customer gender data as part of plans to make non-binary and transgender people more inclusive.

Lloyds changed its employee health insurance plans to include private sex reassignment surgery in 2016 – the first UK company to do so.