Dividend outlook's strong, says Tucker

Bloomberg and staff reporter

HSBC (0005) senior executives told shareholders in Hong Kong that they remained focused on paying out dividends and are committed to growing in the Asia region.

At an annual presentation to hundreds of shareholders, HSBC chairman Mark Tucker said he was confident about the targets despite the geopolitical uncertainty and reiterated the firm is continuing to build significant businesses across Asia. The bank's dividend outlook also remains strong, he said.

The mood at the meeting was a marked contrast to gatherings in recent years. In 2022, disgruntled shareholders grilled senior management after dividends were cut during the pandemic and in 2023 HSBC was battling a push by its top shareholder, Ping An Insurance (2318), to split off its Asian operations.

Chief executive Georges Elhedery unleashed a sweeping overhaul at the 160-year old lender, combining the commercial and investment banking units and making operations in the UK and Hong Kong standalone businesses. He shuttered most of its mergers and acquisition and equity underwriting operations in the US, UK and continental Europe.

Elhedery told the meeting that the bank will expand the number of wealth centers in Hong Kong.

The restructuring has been endorsed by Ping An, which last month said it's "very happy" with the direction, marking a dramatic shift in tone.

Meanwhile, the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation has unveiled its first premier elite wealth center in Hong Kong.

The new center, located in HSBC's headquarters in Central, spans an area of over 10,000 square feet.

It features nearly 100 wealth servicing professionals and around 40 fully equipped meeting rooms for discussions with clients.