SYDNEY: HSBC Holdings Plc is studying options for its consumer banking business in Australia including a potential sale as the bank looks to further slim down its operations, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
The UK lender is likely to retain its commercial banking operations in Australia to serve its corporate clients globally, one of the people said, who asked not to be identified as information is private.
The consumer banking business – which consists of more than 40 branches and offices as well as its loan books and retail customers in Australia – could attract other major banks in the country, the person said.
Deliberations are at an early stage and HSBC could decide against any deal, said the people. A representative for HSBC declined to comment.
Any divestment would be part of new chief executive officer Georges Elhedery’s sweeping overhaul that aims to simplify the nearly 160-year-old bank’s businesses.
The bank recently created a new Eastern regional unit that included Asia Pacific and the Middle East, and a Western market that included its non-ring-fenced bank in the United Kingdom, Europe and the Americas. Hong Kong and the United Kingdom will be standalone units.
HSBC has also explored selling various businesses in Germany including its wealth-management, custody and fund administration units, Bloomberg News reported last year.
The UK bank completed a sale of its Canadian business to Royal Bank of Canada for US$10.1bil in 2024 following its exit from loss-making consumer operations in France and the United States.
HSBC established its operations in Australia in 1965 and obtained a commercial licence in 1986, according to its website.
In November, the lender reported A$31.8bil in mortgages on its books, along with A$516mil in credit cards and A$538mil in other household loans, according to disclosures filed with the regulator.
Australia’s consumer banking industry has been consolidating in recent years.
In 2022, Citigroup Inc sold its consumer unit in the country to National Australia Bank Ltd. — Bloomberg
