HSBC’s looming pensions crisis: will the bank win the battle but lose the war? September 4, 2020 A business of any reasonable size should have members of its team scanning the horizon for potential problems, like Frederick Fleet in the crow’s nest of RMS Titanic. The most dangerous crises, though, are those which fall on a company from an apparently cloudless sky: those which hit unprepared, and leave a business scrabbling for [...]
HSBC profit plummets due to coronavirus pandemic August 3, 2020 HSBC warned warned its bad debt charges could soar to $13bn this year as the bank reported a sharp drop in profit in the first half of 2020 due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The figures The lender’s share price fell 4.63 per cent to 326.25p this morning as it announced that profit [...]
HSBC to invest further in China amid row over support for Hong Kong law July 3, 2020 HSBC has announced plans to make new investments in its wealth management and insurance operations in mainland China, after coming under fire for backing the controversial new security law in Hong Kong. The UK-based lender has been criticised by investors and politicians over its support for the new National Security Law in Hong Kong, which [...]
Don’t sacrifice Hong Kong for bankers’ bonuses, Raab tells HSBC July 1, 2020 Foreign secretary Dominic Raab today criticised HSBC and other British banks for supporting China’s controversial new security law in Hong Kong, saying the rights of its citizens should not be sacrificed for bankers’ bonuses. HSBC and fellow Asia-focused lender Standard Chartered have come under fire from politicians in the UK and US after the banks [...]
HSBC to cut 35,000 jobs as bank resumes redundancy plan June 17, 2020 HSBC is resuming a massive redundancy plan that had been put on pause after the outbreak of coronavirus, with 35,000 jobs set to be cut. The job cuts will be made over the medium term, while the lender will also freeze almost all external recruitment, said chief executive Noel Quinn in a memo sent to [...]
Mike Pompeo slams HSBC for ‘corporate kowtow’ to China June 10, 2020 US secretary of state Mike Pompeo has criticised HSBC for backing China’s moves to limit Hong Kong’s autonomy, accusing the British bank of a “corporate kowtow” to Beijing. Pompeo said the US stood ready to help Britain with alternatives after Beijing reportedly threatened to punish HSBC and break commitments to build nuclear power plants in [...]
HSBC Asia chief backs new Chinese security law for Hong Kong June 3, 2020 HSBC’s chief executive in Asia has signed a petition backing China’s imposition of a new national security law on semi-autonomous Hong Kong. The bank today confirmed that chief Peter Wong had signed the petition, and also said on social media that it “respects and supports all laws that stabilise Hong Kong’s social order”. The declaration [...]
HSBC first quarter profit halves on coronavirus pandemic April 28, 2020 HSBC saw coronavirus rip its first quarter profit in half today as it counted a huge $2.4bn jump in credit losses as a result of the pandemic. The bank’s share price declined 1.7 per cent to 409.3p in early trading as it revealed profit before tax sank 48 per cent year on year to $3.21bn. [...]
British bank bosses give up bonuses amid coronavirus crisis April 8, 2020 Top bosses at British banks including Natwest and Lloyds have taken salary cuts and ditched bonuses worth millions of pounds as consumers and businesses suffer the impact of the coronavirus outbreak. Natwest chief executive Alison Rose will donate a quarter of her remaining salary for 2020 — set at £2.2m per year — to a [...]
Noel Quinn made HSBC chief executive on permanent basis March 17, 2020 Banking giant HSBC has confirmed that interim chief executive Noel Quinn will take up the post permanently with immediate effect, bringing to an end a six-month external search. In August last year chairman Mark Tucker ousted chief executive John Flint over an alleged argument about how fast the bank should have been hitting its targets. [...]