<div id="readability-page-1">  <p><time datetime="2026-05-05T07:29:04+01:00">    Tuesday 05 May 2026 7:29 am  </time></p>         <div>                                                                                                                 Add as a preferred        source on Google                        </div>    <figure>    <div>       </div> <img width="742" height="495" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.cityam.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/HSBC-1200-x800-2.jpeg/query-dz03NDI?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.cityam.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/HSBC-1200-x800-2.jpeg/query-dz03NDI"/>  <figcaption>HSBC gave its first quarter update on Tuesday.</figcaption> </figure> <p>HSBC missed its profit target in the first quarter of the year after the blue-chip lender booked a mammoth credit charge. </p><p>The FTSE 100 giant – which boasts a huge £230bn market cap – recorded a pre-tax profit of $9.4bn (£6.5bn), missing the $9.6bn pencilled in by analysts. This figure is also down $100m on the sum recorded for the same period last year.</p><p>The fall came despite revenue notching six per cent growth at $18.6bn following a continued strong performance in the bank’s wealth division.</p><p>Net new money for the wealth arm topped $39bn in the quarter, with the lion’s share of $34bn of this coming Asia.</p><p>HSBC’s net interest margin reached 1.6 per cent, just a basis point higher than last year. But the bank upgraded its net interest income target to around $46bn for 2026, from “at least $45bn” previously.</p><p>It comes after the Iran was fanned inflationary fears across the globe, leaving central banks hesitant to take the chop to interest rates.</p><h2 id="h-hsbc-posts-surge-in-credit-charges">HSBC posts surge in credit charges</h2><p>But a major portion of this growth was offset by the $1.3bn credit charge recorded by the bank.</p><p>The figure was a major jump on the $400m charge recorded in the first quarter of 2025. Around $300m of the new hit was put down to the conflict in the Middle East.</p><p>HSBC downgraded its 2026 credit charge to 45 ​basis points of average gross loans, from 40 basis point previously, as the bank pointed to “ongoing uncertainty in the outlook”.</p><p>Meanwhile, the lender also recorded a $400m fraud-related charge in the UK. It did not identify the company involved.</p><p>The bank said it had a total of $3bn in exposure to such securitisation financing, which refers to the pooling of various types of contractual debt, such as residential mortgages, commercial loans, or auto loans, and selling them as tradeable securities to investors.</p><p>The surge in provisions continued a trend seen across the London market’s top banking giants throughout reporting season.</p><p>The FTSE 100’s Big Five – which counts HSBC alongside its peers Natwest, Standard Chartered, Lloyds and Barclays – all hiked loan loss provisions in the quarter on the account of market volatility.</p><p>Barclays set aside £823m for potential loan losses, up from £643m in the same period last year, in a stark sign the firm was bracing for an economic crunch. But, in a similar case to HSBC, a significant portion of this at £228m was driven by a UK fraud charge, relating to Barclays’ exposure to MFS.</p><p>Lloyds set aside £295m for sour loans, which £101m was attributed to the “deterioration in economic outlook as a result of the Middle East conflict”. Standard Chartered booked $296m in credit impairment charges, with $190m of this related to Iran war “overlays”.</p> </div>

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<p>HSBC reported a pre-tax profit of $9.4bn for Q1 2026, missing analysts' expectations of $9.6bn, largely due to a $1.3bn credit charge, significantly higher than the previous year's $400m. Despite a 6% revenue growth to $18.6bn, inflationary fears from the Iran conflict impacted the bank's outlook, leading to an increase in loan loss provisions across major UK banks. HSBC also raised its net interest income target for 2026 to around $46bn, reflecting ongoing market volatility and uncertainty.</p>

- HSBC reported a first-quarter pre-tax profit of $9.4 billion, falling short of the $9.6 billion target due to a $1.3 billion credit charge, significantly rising from $400 million in the previous year.  
- Despite a 6% revenue growth to $18.6 billion and a strong performance in its wealth division, the bank highlighted ongoing uncertainties impacting its credit outlook and upgraded its net interest income target for 2026.  
- Similar trends in increased loan loss provisions were observed across major UK banks, as they prepared for potential economic challenges, partly linked to the volatility from the Middle East conflict.

HSBC profit drops after Iran war and private credit charges bite