An IMGW News Report
HSBC has agreed to sell its retail banking operations in Bahrain to Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait (BBK), as the lender presses ahead with its global restructuring.
The transaction will see approximately 76,000 retail customers, along with their loans, deposits, and accounts, transferred to BBK, a bank majority-owned by the Bahraini and Kuwaiti governments. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. HSBC’s corporate and private banking businesses in Bahrain remain unaffected.
The sale is the latest step in HSBC’s strategic retreat from lower-return consumer banking operations. The bank has been scaling back its retail footprint, consolidating parts of its commercial and investment banking divisions, and streamlining its leadership structure. In recent weeks, HSBC has also shed around 40 investment banking roles in Hong Kong, according to sources cited by Reuters.
The lender’s restructuring has seen it shift its focus increasingly towards Asia, accelerating a long-standing pivot. Last month, HSBC announced plans to wind down its mergers and acquisitions advisory unit and parts of its equities business in Europe and the Americas—marking its most significant retreat from investment banking in decades.
HSBC traces its origins to Hong Kong and Shanghai, where it was founded in 1865 as The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation to finance trade between Asia and Europe. Now one of the world’s largest financial institutions, the bank operates in over 60 countries, with a strong presence in Asia, Europe, and the Americas. Its ongoing restructuring reflects a strategic shift towards its most profitable markets, particularly in Asia, while scaling back in regions with lower returns.
The group is set to report its full-year results on Wednesday, with analysts expecting cost-cutting measures worth up to $1.5 billion, according to the Financial Times.
