The bank – which still has its headquarters in London even though it makes most of its money in Asia – told investors on Tuesday it planned to “increase” its investments in the region by around $ 6 billion. It also allows more resources to be transferred there, including moving some key staff.
The continued focus on Asia came when HSBC announced that its pre-tax profit fell to $ 8.8 billion last year, a drop of 34% from the previous year. Revenue, meanwhile, fell 10% to $ 50.4 billion.
Still, it was still better than analysts had expected. And the bank announced Tuesday its intention to restore its dividend “at the first opportunity”, from 15 cents per share.
“It was a difficult decision and we deeply regret the impact it has had on our shareholders,” Tucker said in his statement, adding that the board had “adopted a policy designed to deliver sustainable dividends going forward. “.
HSBC stock rose 2.2% in Hong Kong on Tuesday before retreating somewhat.
However, the bank revealed in its results that it was in talks to sell its retail subsidiary in France.
“[We] are in negotiations for a potential sale although no decision has yet been made, “he said.” If a sale is implemented, given the underlying performance of the French retail business, a loss on the sale is expected. “
– This is a developing story and will be updated.