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05-Feb-2018
Ain’t no mountain high enough: Top City banker is a man on a mission
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No parent would ever forget hearing their five-year-old son described by doctors as the
“luckiest of the unlucky” – and five years ago this was the traumatic news delivered to top
HSBC banker Rob Ritchie and his wife Tanya.Their son Toby was diagnosed with a grade
two tumour on his brain stem.“It is where all the wires are that connect his brain to his spine
on to his limbs, so it can’t be taken out,” Ritchie tells City A.M.“But it is a low grade tumour,
so it grows slowly over many years. So we have managed it with surgery, with
chemotherapy over the last five years.”The co-head of HSBC’s global banking business
says processing the situation took some time. But he is determined to make the best of a
heartbreaking situation, and has turned to the City for support.*Support from the City*In the
last week of this month, Ritchie will lead 38 City workers and friends in a punishing Alpine
fundraising expedition to ski tour the height of Everest – some 8.8km – in four days.Joining
them will be property expert and TV presenter Phil Spencer.Starting in the Swiss ski resort
of Verbier, Ritchie will represent HSBC. Other teams will come from his former employer
Goldman Sachs, Barclays, JP Morgan Cazenove, insurance broker BMS and wealth
manager Smith & Williamson.The plan is to cover 2.2km of vertical ascent each day,
climbing up mountains on skis. “That is much more than most people would want to do in a
day,” he says.You lug yourself going uphill rather than doing all the fun stuff.*9,000 calories
a day*The key to covering the distance, Ritchie explains, is to avoid the temptation to attack
steeper gradients.Instead it is a case of long and steady, with 10-12 hours spent on the
slopes. The cumulative effect is really tiring. It’s really exhausting... By the end your
decision-making is quite poor.The 44-year-old’s heart rate monitor calculated he was
burning up to 9,000 calories a day the last time he attempted a similar feat.This year’s
challenge is similar to the inaugural event in 2015.Then Ritchie was overwhelmed by
support from Goldman Sachs, where he was the head of European corporate debt capital
markets.Countering the perception of Goldmans as a cut-throat organisation, partners at the
Wall Street giant helped raise £3m for The Everest Centre for Research into Paediatric Low
Grade Brain Tumours.With a further £2m coming from The Brain Tumour Charity, a centre
in Heidelberg, Germany was set up. Research is performed in conjunction with experts from
Queen Mary’s University in London and Great Ormond Street hospital.*Blunt
hammer*Ritchie says brain tumours account for around 50 per cent of childhood
cancers.But low grade tumours – such as the one afflicting his son – only receive around
two per cent of research funding .“Investment in research finds solutions, just look at
leukaemia and breast cancer,” he says.“[It could mean] people like my son Toby won’t have
to deal with toxic and very inappropriate treatments, which are a very blunt hammer on a
very precise issue.”Less than a year into his job at HSBC, Ritchie is playing down his
chances of hitting the monetary heights of 2015. So far £250,000 has been raised for 2018’s
adventure. He hopes to get to around £500,000.“The City is a great hunting ground for
people that are very proactive,” he says. “For people who are well paid; for really good
people but who are busy and don’t always have the time to do charity work – but it doesn’t
mean they don’t want to.”Rob and Toby*Military support*Alongside support staff and four
military guides, four injured members of the armed services will also take part in the
challenge.Ritchie admits their attendance may appear tangential, but says there are
parallels to be drawn.“My son, it is like he’s been shot. It’s like he’s had a stroke.“He can
use one side of his body, rather like one of the guys who is coming on the trip. He got shot
in the shoulder and can’t use it,” Ritchie adds.Ritchie, who spent around a decade with
Goldman before joining HSBC, admits events like the Everest in the Alps also provide an
element of therapy for him.“I happen to be one of the unlucky parents with that very sad
news four or five years ago that my son had this issue…“It is a great outlet for me because it
is a fun thing to be part of. It is really rewarding to see people motivated and enthusiastic to
do things,” he says.And with so many City heavy-hitters taking on the challenge, is there a
danger competition between teams could go over the top?“We’ve got a lot of alpha people,”
Ritchie says. “I think it will get competitive even within the teams.”