Banking giant HSBC on Wednesday revealed that Hong Kong employees whose roles are related to its mergers and acquisitions (M&A) as well as equity capital market (ECM) businesses could be affected, as it kicks off a fresh round of job cuts worldwide as part of measures to slash costs by US$1.5 billion by the end of 2026.

Its new chief executive, George Elhedery, said the group is looking at cutting its global personnel expenses by eight percent over 2025 and 2026, as it withdraws from mergers and acquisitions banking activity in the UK, Europe, and the US.

Speaking at an online press conference, Elhedery refused to say how many jobs will go.

"Some of them definitely relate to M&A and the ECM in UK, Europe, and the US. All those supporting this activity will be possibly impacted, but also in these areas of the bank, in particular investment banking, there will be continuous adjustment of the workforce, both to clients, to activities, and to proposition," he said.

"I would say that partly would be a normal course of business, and partly is related to the investment banking decisions," he added.

Separately, Pam Kaur, the HSBC's chief financial officer, said that risks related to its Hong Kong property business book has been very low and that the group is expecting a positive outlook for the SAR's real estate industry going forward, following reduced interest rates.

"The sector has been challenged because of rental prices and interest rates and vacancy levels. However, this year we have seen some positive momentum, both in terms of the volume and the price of property transactions in Hong Kong is increasing," she noted.

HSBC added that businesses on the mainland remain resilient.