London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Sep 05, 2025

HSBC shares fall to 25-year low as fears for China business grow

HSBC shares fall to 25-year low as fears for China business grow

HSBC's shares plunged to historic lows on Monday as the bank was hit by new fears about its business in China and a report accusing it and other major lenders of failing to stop criminals from moving dirty money around the world.

The stock closed down more than 5% in Hong Kong at its lowest level since 1995, according to data provider Refinitiv. The pain continued in London, where the bank's shares were last trading down 6% at another multi-decade low.

This has already been a terrible year for HSBC's shareholders as the bank grapples with a global recession, plunging profits, US-China tensions and a political firestorm in Hong Kong.

But the bank was slapped with even more bad news this weekend, with Chinese state media suggesting that it could be included on a list of companies which could face restrictions on doing business in China.

"It isn't good," said Stephen Innes, chief global market strategist at AxiCorp. "Fear of the unknown is what triggers investors to cut and run."


Trouble in China

HSBC's woes in China have been well documented. The London-based lender traces its roots to Hong Kong and has carved out a lucrative role in global banking for decades by straddling East and West. Asia delivered more than 80% of HSBC's profits last year.

But tensions between Beijing and the West have made HSBC a popular punching bag in Chinese state media, and the bank has long been floated as a potential candidate for a list of "unreliable" entities that Beijing could sanction.

On Saturday, investors were given another reason to worry about China when the country's Commerce Ministry laid out for the first time how that long-rumored list would work.

Any business placed on the so-called "unreliable entity list" could be restricted from investing in China, participating in Chinese imports or exports, or having its staff enter the country, the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry did not say which companies are on that list. But HSBC's possible inclusion was once again mentioned this weekend by the Chinese state-run tabloid Global Times, which also cited several American companies as possible targets.

HSBC has warned investors about the potential consequences from worsening US-China relations. CEO Noel Quinn said last month that the tensions "inevitably create challenging situations for an organization with HSBC's footprint."

And in July, the bank denied longstanding accusations from Chinese state media that it "framed" Huawei to help the US government. (The Chinese tech firm is in a tense legal battle with the United States, and a Canadian court is considering whether to extradite Huawei's CFO to stand trial in the United States.)

Further action from China may not be imminent, though. The Global Times also said that "there was no timetable or specific companies earmarked for the list," citing an official at China's Commerce Ministry. Instead, the message was meant to show that "China is sending a stern warning," according to the publication.

Innes said the move reminded investors of the bank's vulnerabilities. "If they can't do business in China, it's going to be a tremendous hit to both top and bottom lines," he told CNN Business.


Suspicious activity

Adding to HSBC's problems, BuzzFeed reported on Sunday that some of the world's biggest banks, including HSBC, "continued to move money for suspected criminals" despite documented concerns about certain transactions.

The publication said it had investigated more than 2,100 suspicious activity reports (SARs) compiled by the US Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, which is known as "Fincen," to support its claims.

BuzzFeed said it shared the documents with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, an organization that has published other investigations involving suspicious financial activity, such as the Panama Papers and the Paradise Papers. CNN Business has not independently verified any of the Fincen documents.

In a statement Monday, HSBC said that it would "not comment on suspicious activity reporting."

It defended its efforts to "combat financial crime," saying that it had worked with a third-party monitor to overhaul its practices starting in 2012. It added that the bank is a "much safer institution" than it was back then.

In December 2012, HSBC agreed with US regulators to pay $1.9 billion to resolve money-laundering allegations. The Department of Justice and US Treasury said then that HSBC had allowed the most notorious international drug cartels to launder billions of dollars across borders.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
US Justice Department Launches Criminal Mortgage-Fraud Probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Escalating Drug Trafficking and Violence in Latin America: A Growing Crisis
US and Taiwanese Defence Officials Held Secret Talks in Alaska
Report: Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission in North Korea Ordered by Trump in 2019 Ended in Failure
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Florida Murder Case: The Adelson Family, the Killing of Dan Markel, and the Trial of Donna Adelson
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Big Tech Executives Laud Trump at White House Dinner, Unveil Massive U.S. Investments
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
‘Looks Like a Wig’: Online Users Express Concern Over Kate Middleton
Brand-New $1 Million Yacht Sinks Just Fifteen Minutes After Maiden Launch in Turkey
Here’s What the FBI Seized in John Bolton Raid — and the Legal Risks He Faces
Florida’s Vaccine Revolution: DeSantis Declares War on Mandates
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
"The Situation Has Never Been This Bad": The Fall of PepsiCo
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
The Fashion Designer Who Became an Italian Symbol: Giorgio Armani Has Died at 91
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Queen Camilla’s Teenage Courage: Fended Off Attempted Assault on London Train, New Biography Reveals
Scottish Brothers Set Record in Historic Pacific Row
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
×