Opinion: Corporate Philanthropy Is ‘Tantamount to Stealing’

A recent speech by HSBC Chairman Stephen Green praising corporate philanthropy “should have sparked moral outrage” among the publicly traded banking giant’s shareholders, an author argues in a Wall Street Journal opinion column.

Jamie Whyte, author of the book Crimes Against Logic, cites a speach earlier this month in which Mr. Green challenged the late economist Milton Friedman’s dictum that a firm’s only responsibility is to make a profit and said “there is a very real place” for corporate giving.

While such giving can be part of a firm’s marketing strategy and thus raise profits by increasing sales, Mr. Green “is promoting the kind of philanthropy that is tantamount to stealing shareholders’ money,” Mr. Whyte writes.

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