Cut costs, Chinese investor tells HSBC in push for break-up

HSBC must be “much more aggressive” in its approach to cutting costs, a Chinese investor has said, as it stepped up calls for a break-up of the bank.

Ping An, which is HSBC’S largest shareholder, said the lender needed to “radically” reduce its costs, pointing to potential job cuts and lower IT spending, as well as reducing the costs of its headquarters in Canary Wharf.

Huang Yong, chairman of the Chinese insurance giant, added that the bank should adopt an “open attitude” to its calls for a break-up of the company “rather than attempting to simply bypass and reject them”.

It is the strongest public intervention to date by Ping An, which for months has been calling for HSBC to spin off its Asian operations to unlock more value for shareholders.

HSBC has been selling off businesses outside Asia and is exploring a sale of its operations in Canada.

But Ping An made it clear it was unhappy with the pace and scale of the changes.

Mr Huang said: “Just divesting a few small markets or businesses will not fundamentally solve these issues.”