HSBC Holdings plc reported a strong set of financial results for the second quarter (Q2) of 2026, with profit before tax rising 60% year over year to $10.1 billion for the three months ended June 30, supported by higher banking income, strong wealth management performance, and the absence of large impairment charges that weighed on results a year earlier.

Profit after tax increased 63% to $7.9 billion compared with the second quarter of 2025. Revenue climbed to $19.1 billion, up $2.6 billion from a year earlier, reflecting a favorable impact from notable items as well as continued momentum across the bank’s core businesses.

Excluding notable items and at constant currency, revenue increased by $1.3 billion to $19.0 billion. HSBC attributed the growth to higher banking net interest income (NII), strong wealth-related fee income in its International Wealth and Premier Banking (IWPB) and Hong Kong businesses, alongside improved performance in Debt and Equity Markets and Wholesale Transaction Banking (WTB) within its Corporate and Institutional Banking (CIB) division.

HSBC Q2 2026 Profit as Wealth and Banking Income Drive Growth

Notable items during the quarter included $0.2 billion in restructuring costs related to HSBC’s ongoing organizational simplification. By comparison, the second quarter of 2025 included $2.1 billion in dilution and impairment losses linked to the bank’s investment in Bank of Communications (BoCom), as well as $0.5 billion in restructuring expenses.

Expected credit losses (ECL) remained stable at $1.1 billion, with stage 3 charges accounting for the majority of the provision. Around $0.2 billion was with Hong Kong’s commercial real estate sector, lower than the $0.4 billion recorded in the same period last year.

Operating expenses declined 2% to $8.7 billion, benefiting from lower restructuring costs and savings generated by HSBC’s simplification program. These reductions were partly offset by higher technology investments, inflation, and adverse foreign exchange movements.

Customer lending increased by $20 billion from the first quarter of 2026, while customer accounts grew by $46 billion, driven primarily by Corporate and Institutional Banking activity in Hong Kong.

Looking ahead, HSBC reaffirmed its target of delivering year-on-year revenue growth from 2026 through 2028, with growth expected to accelerate to 5% in 2028 compared with 2027, excluding notable items and on a constant currency basis.

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