HSBC : Annual Results 2018 media release

19 February 2019

HSBC HOLDINGS PLC

2018 RESULTS - HIGHLIGHTS

John Flint, Group Chief Executive, said:

"These are good results that demonstrate progress against the plan that I outlined in June 2018. Profits and revenue were both up despite a challenging fourth quarter, and our return on tangible equity is significantly higher than in 2017. This is an encouraging first step towards meeting our return on tangible equity target of more than 11% by 2020."

Key highlights

• • Progress made against our eight strategic priorities, including accelerated growth from Asia and our international network, growth in our UK customer base, delivery of more sustainable finance, improved capital efficiency and investments in technology.

• • Reported profit before tax of $19.9bn in 2018 was 16% higher than in 2017, reflecting revenue growth in all of our global businesses. Adjusted profit before tax of $21.7bn in 2018 was 3% higher than in 2017, excluding the effects of foreign currency translation differences and movements in significant items.

• • Reported revenue of $53.8bn was 5% higher, notably driven by a rise in deposit revenue across our global businesses, primarily in Asia, as we benefited from wider margins and grew our balances. These increases were partly offset by lower revenue in Corporate Centre. Adjusted revenue of $53.9bn was 4% higher, excluding the effects of foreign currency translation differences and movements in significant items.

• • Reported operating expenses of $34.7bn were 1% lower, as higher costs, including investments made to grow the business and enhance our digital capabilities were more than offset by net favourable movements in significant items, mainly the non-recurrence of costs to achieve expenditure in 2017. Adjusted operating expenses of $33.0bn were 6% higher, excluding the effects of foreign currency translation differences and movements in significant items.

• • Adjusted jaws for 2018 was negative 1.2%, due to lower adjusted revenue in 4Q18 (down 8% on 3Q18), from weakness in markets. Operating expenses were higher from investments in business growth. We reiterate our commitment to the discipline of positive adjusted jaws.

• • Return on average tangible equity rose to 8.6% from 6.8%, up 1.8 percentage points.

• • Reported loans and advances to customers increased by $32bn. Excluding foreign currency translation differences, loans and advances grew by $66bn or 7% from 1 January 2018.

• • Common equity tier 1 ('CET1') ratio of 14.0% and CRD IV leverage ratio of 5.5%.

• • Maintained the dividend at $0.51 per ordinary share; total dividends in respect of the year of $10.2bn; confident of maintaining at this level.

Financial highlights and key ratios

Year ended 31 Dec

Footnotes	2018 $m	2017 $mChange %
Reported profit before tax	19,890	17,167 15.9
Adjusted profit before tax 1	21,719	21,133 2.8
Return on average ordinary shareholders' equity (annualised)	7.7%	5.9%
Return on average tangible equity	8.6%	6.8%
Adjusted jaws 2	(1.2%)

For footnotes, see page 2.

We use adjusted performance to understand the underlying trends in the business. The main differences between reported and adjusted are foreign currency translation and significant items.

Capital and balance sheet

At 31 Dec

2018 %	2017 % Change
Common equity tier 1 ratio	14.0	14.5
Leverage ratio	5.5	5.6
$m	$m $m
Loans and advances to customers	981,696	962,964 18,732
Customer accounts	1,362,643	1,364,462 (1,819)
Risk-weighted assets ('RWAs')	865,318	871,337 (6,019)

Registered Office and Group Head Office: 8 Canada Square, London E14 5HQ, United Kingdom

Web:www.hsbc.com

Incorporated in England with limited liability. Registered number 617987

Highlights

Year ended 31 Dec

2018

Footnotes

$m

2017 $m

Reported

Revenue

3

53,780

51,445

Change in expected credit losses and other credit impairment charges Loan impairment charges and other credit risk provisions

(1,767)

N/A

N/A

(1,769)

Operating expenses

(34,659)

(34,884)

Profit before tax Adjusted Revenue

19,890

17,167

3

53,940

51,661

Change in expected credit losses and other credit impairment charges Loan impairment charges and other credit risk provisions

(1,767)

N/A

N/A

(1,713)

Operating expenses

(32,990)

(31,231)

Profit before tax

21,719

21,133

Significant items affecting adjusted performance Revenue

Customer redress programmes

Disposals, acquisitions and investment in new businesses Fair value movements on financial instruments Operating expenses

53 (113) (100)

(108) 274 (245)

Costs of structural reform Costs to achieve

(361)

(420)

-

(3,002)

Customer redress programmes

(146)

(655)

Disposals, acquisitions and investment in new businesses Gain on partial settlement of pension obligation

(52) -

(53)

Past service costs of guaranteed minimum pension benefits equalisation Restructuring and other related costs

(228)

(66)

188 - -

Settlements and provisions in connection with legal matters and other regulatory matters

(816)

198

1 Adjusted performance is computed by adjusting reported results for the year-on-year effects of foreign currency translation differences and significant items which distort year-on-year comparisons.

• 2 Includes UK bank levy.

• 3 Net operating income before loan impairment charges and other credit risk provisions, also referred to as revenue.

• 2 HSBC Holdings plc 2018 Results

Statement by Mark E Tucker, Group Chairman

Our ability to meet our targets depends on being able to help our customers manage the present uncertainty and capture the opportunities that unquestionably exist.

HSBC is in a strong position. Our performance in 2018 demonstrated the underlying health of the business and the potential of the strategy that John Flint, our Group Chief Executive, announced in June.

Despite a challenging external environment in the fourth quarter, all of our global businesses delivered increased profits and the Group achieved a higher return on tangible equity in 2018. Asia again contributed a substantial portion of the Group's profits, notably in Retail Banking and Wealth Management and Commercial Banking. Overall, the Group delivered reported profit before tax of $19.9bn, up 16% on 2017, and adjusted profit before tax of $21.7bn, up 3%.

This performance allows us to approve a fourth interim dividend of $0.21, bringing the total dividend for 2018 to $0.51.

The Board of Directors

There were a number of Board changes in 2018.

Jonathan Symonds became Deputy Group Chairman. Iain Mackay left the business after 11 years, with the last eight spent as Group Finance Director. My thanks go to Iain for his dedicated service to the Group, and in particular for the integral role he played in executing the Group strategy and improving the quality of our financial reporting. Ewen Stevenson joined the Board as Group Chief Financial Officer on 1 January this year.

We said goodbye to Phillip Ameen, Joachim Faber and John Lipsky, all of whom retired from the Board. I am very grateful to each of them for their invaluable advice and counsel. Their departures led to a reduction in the size of the Board as part of our ongoing work to simplify, clarify and strengthen governance arrangements.

We also cut the number of Board committees from seven to five and simplified subsidiary governance. I believe this creates clearer and stronger lines of authority and accountability, enabling the Board to devote more time to priority areas.

We welcome the new UK Corporate Governance Code, which places greater emphasis on how the Board considers the interests of all stakeholders in its discussions and decision making, and promotes a strong internal culture.

We see the new Code as an opportunity to further enhance our existing stakeholder engagement, ensuring that the business as a whole can continue to develop constructive and considerate relationships with all those with whom we work. We will include details of this in the Annual Report and Accounts 2019.

Connecting customers to opportunities

The financial targets that John announced in June remain appropriate, even as the global economic outlook becomes less predictable. Our ability to meet them depends on being able to help our customers manage the present uncertainty and capture the opportunities that unquestionably exist.

The system of global trade remains subject to political pressure, and differences between China and the US will likely continue to inform sentiment in 2019. However, the conclusion of major trade agreements - including the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership; the EU's landmark bilateral agreements with Japan and Singapore; and the potential ratification of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement in 2019 - provide important counterweights that could give impetus to international trade in the year ahead. The fundamentals for growth in Asia remain strong in spite of a softer regional economic outlook. The structural and financial reforms underway across the region should continue to support economic development. China remains subject to domestic and external pressures, but we expect it to maintain strong growth. We also expect further financial liberalisation to form part of China's response to changing external conditions. This will benefit domestic and international customers and investors.

The US economy and the influence of the Federal Reserve remain central to global sentiment. We expect policymakers to adopt a more cautious stance in 2019, even as the economy continues to grow. A slowdown in the pace of US interest rate rises could carry positive implications for Asian economies and businesses, as well as for US growth. Both the Mexican and Canadian economies are poised to grow at a steady pace.

Many of our UK customers are understandably cautious about the immediate future, given the prolonged uncertainty surrounding the UK's exit from the European Union. HSBC UK, our new UK ring-fenced bank, has an important role in supporting our customers as they prepare for a range of possible outcomes. Our universal banking business in France will also help provide continuity to our customers in the UK and the rest of Europe. In Europe, as elsewhere, we are confident in our ability to help customers make the most of the opportunities they see.

There are more risks to global economic growth than this time last year, and we remain alive and responsive to all possibilities. Our strong balance sheet and revenue base equip us to navigate these risks and, most importantly, enable us to help our customers negotiate their own paths.

Fulfilling our potential

Enabling our people to do their jobs to the best of their ability is a priority for the Board, and for me personally. They are essential to our present and future success. The Board fully endorses the Group's commitment to develop and support our people and we offer the Group Management Board our wholehearted support in realising that ambition.

I had the honour of officially opening the new headquarters of HSBC UK in Birmingham in December. As well as providing a new home for the UK ring-fenced bank, One Centenary Square houses the European hub of HSBC University, our global learning and development centre. Since then, we have opened new HSBC University hubs at our new premises in Dubai, and in Mexico City. These cutting-edge facilities form part of our response to the complex challenges our employees now face working for a global bank in an unpredictable environment. HSBC University aims not only to equip them with the right skills, but also to help them understand the culture that will continue to make HSBC a unique organisation.

Many thanks

My thanks go to John and each of the 235,000 people who work for HSBC. Their hard work, commitment and talent has been key to the Group's progress in 2018. Our challenge and shared purpose is to build on that good work through the rest of 2019 and beyond. I have every confidence we can do so.

4 HSBC Holdings plc 2018 Results

Review by John Flint, Group Chief Executive

Helping our people be at their best is the critical enabler of our business strategy and fundamental to delivering our financial targets.

In June 2018, I set out a plan to get HSBC growing again and to create value for shareholders. While this targets clear financial outcomes, it has our customers at its centre. We want to bring more of HSBC to more people and to serve them in the best possible way. The eight strategic priorities that I outlined in June are the key to achieving these aims. We are seeking to connect more customers to our international network and high-growth markets. We are working to improve our capital efficiency and to turn our US business around. We are investing in technology and our digital capabilities to serve our customers better and stay competitive. We are also taking steps to support our people more effectively and help them be at their best.

I am encouraged by our progress so far. We are growing customer numbers and capturing market share in our scale markets and from our international network. Our US business is short of where we want it to be, but is moving in the right direction. Our investment in technology is making our business simpler, safer, and easier for our customers to use. We have launched new products and made strategic hires in mainland China and Hong Kong that are materially improving our service to international clients. We have also established our UK ring-fenced bank.

These were important factors in our 2018 financial performance. Revenue growth in our four global businesses helped deliver higher Group reported and adjusted profit before tax. Group return on tangible equity - our headline measure - was also up significantly from 6.8% in 2017 to 8.6%. This is a good first step towards meeting our return on tangible equity target of more than 11% by 2020.

Engaging our people

HSBC has a strong and proud culture. We understand our role and our purpose, and that HSBC exists to serve others. As Group Chief Executive, I have a responsibility to nurture and preserve those aspects of our culture that serve us well. I also recognise that I have a responsibility to improve aspects of our behaviours that may be impeding our performance.

In my first year in this role, I started a conversation throughout the bank about how we help our people be the best version of themselves. This is part of a broader ambition to create what we call the healthiest human system in our industry.

There is more that we can do to create an environment that is sufficiently supportive, protective and engaging. We need to have more open and honest conversations. This is the least that our people should be able to expect. If we cannot provide it, it hurts our ability to serve not just our customers, but all the stakeholder groups on whom our success depends. It also impedes our ability to deliver our strategy and our targets.

We have started by signalling to our people that creating a safe and supportive working environment is a strategic priority for the business. Leaders are being encouraged to model the right behaviours and provide direction on the type of behaviour we expect. We are also opening conversations around issues like mental health, well-being, bullying and harassment.

We are making material changes to the organisation that allow us to support our people more effectively. Our governance procedures are being simplified and strengthened to reduce complexity and make it easier for people to do their jobs. We are also helping our people work more flexibly. On learning and development, we have opened new HSBC University hubs around the world and improved access to digital training.

At an individual level, every person at HSBC is being encouraged to think about how we create the healthiest human system in our industry, and to play an active role in doing so. We are regularly collecting feedback from our people and it is informing the action we are taking.

The early signs are positive. In 2018, 66% of our employees said they would recommend HSBC as a great place to work, up from 64% the previous year. While this demonstrates an improvement in a relatively short space of time, it also shows that we have much further to go. This work will continue into 2019 and beyond. If we are successful, then we will materially improve all aspects of HSBC's performance, including delivery of our strategy.

Business performance

All four global businesses grew adjusted revenue in 2018.

Retail Banking and Wealth Management had a very good year. Higher interest rates, rising customer numbers, and growth of more than $20bn in our UK and Hong Kong mortgage book all contributed to a strong rise in Retail Banking adjusted revenue. Despite a good performance in the first three quarters of the year, Wealth Management adjusted revenue fell slightly in 2018 due to the effects of market volatility in the fourth quarter.

Commercial Banking had an excellent 2018, delivering double-digit adjusted revenue growth on the back of an outstanding performance in Global Liquidity and Cash Management. Credit and Lending generated adjusted revenue growth from higher balances, despite lower margins from increased competition. Solid performances in Asia and Europe enabled Global Trade and Receivables Finance to grow adjusted revenue despite an increasingly difficult environment for trade.

Global Banking and Markets grew adjusted revenue in spite of considerably reduced market activity in the fourth quarter. Our market-leading transaction banking franchises generated strong increases in adjusted revenue, which exceeded the reduction in markets-related revenue from Rates, Credit, and Equities.

Global Private Banking returned to growth in 2018 on the back of new business won in Hong Kong. Adjusted revenue from deposits also increased on the back of interest rate rises.

Adjusted jaws was negative for 2018. While adjusted costs were broadly as we expected for the full year, adjusted revenue fell short due to market weakness in the fourth quarter. Positive jaws remains an important discipline in delivering our financial targets and we remain committed to it in 2019.

Expected credit losses were slightly higher than loan impairment charges in 2017, reflecting the uncertain economic outlook in the UK and heightened downside risks.

Our common equity tier 1 ratio of 14% was lower than at the same point in 2017, due mainly to adverse foreign exchange movements and the impact of higher lending.