Feb 21, 2017
HSBC strategy scrutinised as earnings disappoint
Many analysts have also said that HSBC is outgunned by local banks in southern China, where it has about 50 branches compared to rivals such as Agricultural Bank of China with 1,500 branches. The UK's vote to leave the EU last June was the final straw for HSBC as it considered how to value its Swiss-based private bank, which has been a source of angst at the group for several years. Having already booked an $800m goodwill writedown for the private bank in the first half of last year, HSBC decided after the Brexit vote to write off the remaining $2.4bn of goodwill in the unit. Several countries are investigating HSBC after a high-profile leak in 2015 of alleged tax avoidance by clients of its Swiss private bank. In response, HSBC has sold various parts of its private banking operations, shrinking its activities from 150 countries to 50 since 2011.
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