HSBC profits surge by a third as cost-cutting exceeds target

HSBC has revealed its quarterly profits have leapt by nearly a third as it nears the end of a two billion US dollar (£1.5 billion) cost-cutting programme.The banking giant said it had made bigger savings than it originally set out to do.It reported a pre-tax profit of 9.6 billion US dollars (£7.2 billion) for the three months to September, which was 32% higher than the same period last year.This was driven by it getting more income from interest rates, lower expected credit losses, and a smaller provision for legal costs than the same period last year.HSBC also announced it would be handing up to one billion dollars (£750 million) to shareholders as part of a new share buyback scheme.It comes as the bank revealed its operating expenses – meaning the day-to-day spending of a business, including salaries – were 1.3 billion dollars (£980 million) lower than the same time last year.It follows a major cost-cutting drive kickstarted by chief executive Georges Elhedery in 2025, who set a target to reduce the cost base by around 1.5 billion dollars (£1.1 billion) a year by the end of 2026.HSBC said it had beaten this target with cost savings worth 1.9 billion dollars (£1.4 billion), which it expects to reach two billion dollars (£1.5 billion) by the end of the year.Mr Elhedery said: “Our performance shows that in a more complex world clients continue to turn to us to navigate uncertainty and seize new opportunities.“It also reflects consistent execution of our strategic priorities with pace, precision and discipline.“As we simplify HSBC, we are creating greater capacity to invest, grow and deliver strong returns for our shareholders.”