Background on HSBC and its Significance
HSBC, Europe’s largest bank by assets, reported a net attributable profit of $11,510 million for the first six months of 2025. This represents a 30.6% decrease compared to the same period in 2024. HSBC, with its primary focus on Asia, is a significant player in the global banking industry.
Key Financial Performance
HSBC’s revenue for the first half of 2025 stood at $34,122 million, an 8.5% decrease from the previous year’s revenue. Credit losses amounted to $1,941 million, an 82% increase, resulting in net operating income of $32,181 million for the semester.
- Interest Income: HSBC’s net interest income decreased by 0.5% to $16,821 million.
- Fee Income: Fee income, however, grew by 7% to $6,643 million.
The annualized Return on Tangible Equity (RoTE) for the first half of 2025 was 14.7%, a decrease from 21.4% in the first half of 2024. Excluding notable items, the annualized RoTE for the first half of 2025 was 18.2%, an increase of 1.2 percentage points compared to the first half of 2024.
Second Quarter Performance
In the second quarter of 2025, HSBC reported a post-tax profit of $4,900 million, a 29% decrease from the second quarter of 2024. The bank’s revenue for this period reached $16,500 million.
Capital Distribution to Shareholders
HSBC announced a second interim dividend of $0.10 per share and an additional share buyback program worth up to $3,000 million. This follows a previous share buyback of up to $2,000 million completed in April 2025 and another buyback of up to $3,000 million completed in July 2025. In total, HSBC has committed $9,500 million to shareholders through dividends and buybacks in the first half of 2025.
CEO’s Perspective
Georges Elhedery, CEO of HSBC, stated, “We are making positive progress towards becoming a simpler, more agile, and fundamentally strong organization. We continue to execute our strategy with discipline as we navigate this period of economic uncertainty and market volatility from a position of strength, prioritizing the evolving needs of our customers in all that we do.”
Future Outlook
HSBC maintains its goal of achieving an annualized RoTE of approximately 15%, excluding notable items, over the three-year period from 2025 to 2027. The bank also remains confident in reaching net interest income (NII) of around $42,000 million in 2025.
Key Questions and Answers
- What was HSBC’s net attributable profit for the first half of 2025? HSBC reported a net attributable profit of $11,510 million for the first six months of 2025.
- Why did HSBC’s profit decrease? The profit drop was due to recognizing losses of approximately $2.1 billion related to China’s Bank of Communications (BoCom) and the absence of $3.6 billion in non-recurring gains from the sale of its Canadian and Argentine banking businesses in 2024.
- What is HSBC’s future outlook regarding RoTE and NII? HSBC aims for an annualized RoTE of approximately 15%, excluding notable items, from 2025 to 2027. The bank also expects to achieve net interest income (NII) of around $42,000 million in 2025.
