LONDON — HSBC Holdings plc published its third quarter 2026 earnings release on 27 October 2026. The London-headquartered bank reported profit before tax of $9.6bn for the third quarter of 2026, an increase of $2.3bn or 32% compared with the third quarter of 2025.

Profit after tax rose to $7.6bn, an increase of $2.1bn or 38% compared with the same period in 2025, while revenue increased by $0.8bn to $18.6bn. The Board approved a third interim dividend of $0.10 per share. Constant currency profit before tax excluding notable items was $10.0bn, an increase of $0.9bn compared with the third quarter of 2025.

Net interest income for the third quarter of 2026 was $9.3bn, an increase of $0.5bn or 6% compared with the third quarter of 2025. Banking net interest income increased by $0.6bn to $11.7bn, while the net interest margin remained stable at 1.57%.

Expected credit losses and other credit impairment charges were $0.8bn, a decrease of $0.2bn or 17% compared with the third quarter of 2025. This decrease primarily reflected a $0.1bn reduction in stage 3 charges related to the Hong Kong commercial real estate sector. Operating expenses were $8.8bn, $1.3bn or 12% lower compared with the third quarter of 2025.

Customer lending balances increased by $7.8bn in the third quarter of 2026 compared with the second quarter of 2026 on a reported basis. Customer accounts increased by $9.1bn over the same period.

The common equity tier 1 capital ratio was 13.9% at 30 September 2026, a decrease of 0.2 percentage points compared with 30 June 2026. HSBC has total assets of $3.4tn at 30 September 2026.

HSBC completed a $1bn share buy-back on 28 September 2026. The bank intends to initiate a share buy-back of up to $1bn, expected to be completed by the 2026 full-year results announcement.

"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," said Georges Elhedery, Group CEO.

For the nine months ended 30 September 2026, profit before tax was $29.2bn, an increase of $6.0bn or 26% compared with the same period in 2025. Profit after tax was $22.9bn, an increase of $4.9bn or 28%, while revenue rose by $4.5bn or 9% to $56.4bn.

Expected credit losses for the nine months ended 30 September 2026 were $3.2bn, $0.2bn higher than in the same period in 2025. This charge included a $0.5bn fraud-related, secondary, securitisation exposure with a financial sponsor in the UK in the Corporate and Institutional Banking business, as well as $0.3bn related to the Hong Kong commercial real estate sector.

Operating expenses for the nine months ended 30 September 2026 were $26.2bn, $0.9bn or 3% lower than in the same period in 2025. Wealth balances increased by 3% to $1.6tn at 30 September 2026 compared with 31 December 2025, and the bank attracted net new money of $105bn in the nine months ended 30 September 2026.

HSBC expects a benefit of approximately 40–50 basis points to the Group common equity tier 1 capital ratio at 1 January 2027 from the final Basel 3.1 standards. The bank intends to manage its common equity tier 1 capital ratio within a medium-term target operating range of 14% to 14.5%.

HSBC completed the privatisation of Hang Seng Bank on 26 January 2026, and it is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of the HSBC Group. The bank completed the sale of its operations in Uruguay during the third quarter of 2026.

Why It Matters

The bank's performance reflects consistent execution of strategic priorities and client demand in a complex world, according to Group CEO Georges Elhedery.