HSBC has reported a 9.8% increase in its profit before tax for the third quarter of 2024 (Q3 2024) at $8.5bn, compared to $7.7bn posted in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.
This growth was primarily driven by increased revenue in wealth and personal banking unit (WPB) as well as in foreign exchange, equities, and global debt markets within global banking and markets (GBM).
In the previous quarter, that is Q2 2024, the British universal bank and financial services group’s profit before tax was $8.9bn.
For the first nine months of 2024, HSBC’s profit before tax was $30bn, a decrease of 2% compared to the same period of the previous year.
HSBC witnessed an increase of 5.2% in its revenue for the reported quarter to $16.99bn, compared to $16.16bn reported in Q3 2023.
The increase in revenue was attributed to higher customer activity in HSBC’s wealth products within WPB, bolstered by volatile market conditions. Additionally, strong performance was observed in foreign exchange, equities, and global debt markets in GBM.
HSBC’s net interest income (NII) declined to $7.6bn in Q3 2024 compared to Q3 2023, primarily due to business disposals, higher interest expenses on liabilities, and losses from the early redemption of legacy securities.
This decline also reflected increased funding costs associated with reallocating the commercial surplus into the trading book.
HSBC group chief executive Georges Elhedery said: “We delivered another good quarter, which shows that our strategy is working. There was strong revenue growth and good performances in Wealth and Wholesale Transaction Banking.
“Our strong organic capital generation enables us to announce a further $4.8bn of distributions in respect of the third quarter, which bring the total distributions announced so far in 2024 to $18.4bn.”
HSBC’s banking NII guidance for 2024 remains steady at approximately $43bn, with a targeted cost growth of around 5% for 2024 compared to 2023.
Besides, the bank expects to complete the sale of its business in Argentina in the next quarter.
