HSBC Holdings has called on shareholders to vote against proposals to restructure the bank and pay much higher dividends at its AGM.
An individual shareholder, Ken Lui, has proposed motions both to break up the bank and also to restore dividends to pre-pandemic levels.
Lui has denied he is connected with HSBC’s largest shareholder Ping An, a Chinese insurer, which has also previously called for the UK-based bank to split off its Asian business.
It is not clear which way Ping An will vote its 9% stake on the resolutions, but HSBC chair Mark Tucker urged all shareholders to vote against, a stance he said the board were unanimous about.
“A restructuring or spin-off of its Asia business would create a major period of uncertainty for clients, and employees and shareholders would be disrupted,” he said.
HSBC’s AGM takes place on 5 May.
Shares today were up 1.5% at 558.1p.