(Bloomberg) -- HSBC Holdings Plc’s incoming Chief Executive Officer Georges Elhedery said the British lender is planning to keep its overall bonus pool flat for the year as it works to keep costs contained.
For now, the lender is planning to accrue about $3.8 billion in performance-related pay this year, which is in line with what it set aside in 2023, Elhedery told analysts on a conference call. HSBC’s remuneration committee will make a final decision on the year’s bonus pool in January, he said.
The lender’s moves come as revenue in certain key Wall Street businesses soared in the second quarter. For instance, equities trading revenue more than doubled to $189 million, while income from securities financing jumped 45%.
But like its peers, HSBC has been seeking to keep a lid on costs as the industry prepares for a world of falling interest rates. The company on Wednesday reiterated that it expects expenses for the year to rise about 5% for 2024 compared with 2023.
Elhedery is due to succeed Noel Quinn as CEO of HSBC in early September.
The bank did put aside more money for its bonus pool in the first half of 2024 than it did in the same period a year earlier. But Elhedery said that’s because the bank is looking to smooth out the way it accounts for performance-related pay.
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