Was it HSBC or HSBC kinetic?
Can I ask what kind of questions HSBC asked you, I was asked with all the high street banks how much cash I would need to bank a month, proof of insurance, qualifications for said job, location I worked from, how long I had been doing it, they wanted to look at bank statements from previous accounts, invoices from customers, my website, the list goes on and on.
The online only banks were easy to open an account with, until you tried to pay cash in, then they wanted much more info and in far more depth than I have put above.
A few years ago it was far easier to open a business account, they are far more careful about checking you out as a business now than they were in the past.