Paul J. Davies, Columnist

HSBC Still Rolling in Cash — At Least for Now

The UK-based bank has funded generous payouts partly through sales of unwanted businesses, but those exits are finished.

February 21, 2024 at 1:50 PM UTC

By Paul J. Davies

Paul J. Davies is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering banking and finance. Previously, he was a reporter for the Wall Street Journal and the Financial Times.

King of payouts: HSBC’s lion emblem in Hong Kong — King of payouts: HSBC’s lion emblem in Hong Kong
*Photographer: Lam Yik/Bloomberg*

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HSBC Holdings Plc reported a record $30 billion pretax profit for 2023, but its shares still tumbled on Wednesday because fourth-quarter numbers were marred by several charges totaling nearly $6 billion.

The good news is the UK-based bank still had plenty of spare cash to hand out to investors and will have more to pay out this year. The less-good news is that HSBC will have to work harder to generate cash returns next year and beyond.