HSBC executives met with a large group of investors in Hong Kong to pledge to maintain the dividend and fend off calls from local shareholders for a breakup.
According to Bloomberg News, Du Jiaqi, chairman of HSBC Holdings, said again at a meeting held at the Kowloon Bay International Exhibition and Trade Center in Hong Kong that he regretted cutting dividends during the peak of the epidemic, calling it very unusual. The bank has already started resuming its quarterly dividend and plans to pay a special dividend of $0.21 when it completes the sale of its Canadian subsidiary later this year.
Du Jiaqi also told investors that HSBC has “substantial dividend payout capabilities”, while emphasizing that the bank is set to achieve its best return in a decade this year.
According to reports, CEO Qi Yaonian and other HSBC executives such as Wang Dongsheng, Liao Yijian and Lin Huihong also attended the meeting.
The executives also reiterated their opposition to the demands of major shareholder Ping An and a local activist shareholder in Hong Kong to spin off the Asian business. Ping An has been driving the offensive and defensive battle behind the scenes, calling on HSBC to step up cost-cutting efforts and be open to proposals such as a spin-off.
Du Jiaqi said that restructuring HSBC would bring uncertainty and destroy value.
Local shareholders in Hong Kong make up about a third of HSBC’s investors. Many locals have held their shares for several years.
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