HSBC Holdings PLC (LSE:HSBA) reported higher profits than forecast for the third quarter and announced a new $3 billion share buyback.
Europe's largest lender reported a pre-tax profit of $8.5 billion, up over 6% compared to a year earlier and well ahead of the $7.6 billion consensus estimate.
Revenue increased 5% to $17 billion thanks to higher customer activity in its Wealth business, supported by volatile conditions generating more business in its Global Markets division.
Following the unveiling of his plan for significant structural changes to the bank last week, new chief executive Georges Elhedery said it was "another good quarter, which shows that our strategy is working".
He said the structural changes will start to be implemented "immediately", with further details to be shared as part of a business update alongside full-year results in February.
The buyback and a third interim dividend of $0.10 per share added up to $4.8 billion of distributions for the third quarter, bringing total shareholder distributions announced to $18.4 billion so far in 2024.