HSBC Holdings plc is moving into the next phase of its review of its Singapore life insurance operations, shortlisting three bidders as it reassesses capital deployment and return targets across the group.
People familiar with the process cited by The Business Times say HSBC has reduced the field of suitors for HSBC Life Singapore to Allianz, Daiichi Life Group, and Sumitomo Life Insurance. The interested parties are working with advisers on binding offers expected in the coming weeks, the people said, declining to be named because the talks are private. HSBC is understood to be seeking a valuation of up to US$2 billion for the business. Sumitomo Life’s interest is being routed through Singlife, its Singapore-based life and financial services platform. Other international and Japanese insurers, including Sun Life Financial and Nippon Life Insurance, had previously been linked to the process but are not currently among the shortlisted bidders, according to earlier indications from people with knowledge of the matter.
The review has not yet produced a final decision, and HSBC could still adjust the scope or outcome of any transaction. A spokesperson for HSBC said the Singapore insurance operation “is still undergoing a strategic review” and reiterated the bank’s commitment to the city-state. Singapore remains an international wealth and wholesale banking hub for the group and “a key focus for investment and growth,” the spokesperson said, as reported by The Business Times. For prospective acquirers, HSBC Life Singapore would provide exposure to Singapore’s life and savings market and access to existing distribution channels in Southeast Asia’s retail and affluent segments. For HSBC, a sale or partnership could reallocate capital and reshape its insurance footprint in Asia, while the bank maintains its broader regional wealth strategy.
The Singapore review follows the release of HSBC’s 2025 results, in which wealth and insurance activities contributed to underlying performance even as headline profit was affected by one-off items. For 2025, reported profit before tax declined by US$2.4 billion to US$29.9 billion, mainly due to a US$4.9 billion net adverse impact from notable items including dilution and impairment losses on its stake in Bank of Communications, reserve recycling losses on portfolio disposals in France, legal provisions, and restructuring costs. Profit after tax fell to US$23.1 billion. On a constant-currency basis and excluding notable items, profit before tax increased by US$2.4 billion to US$36.6 billion. The bank said the increase reflected stronger results in International Wealth and Premier Banking and in Hong Kong, as well as transaction banking in the Corporate and Institutional Banking business.
Group revenue rose 4% year on year to US$68.3 billion. Fee and other income from wealth activities, including investment distribution and insurance, and from wholesale transaction banking offset the effect of business disposals and a dilution loss related to Bank of Communications. On a constant-currency, excluding-notable-items basis, revenue reached US$71 billion. Return on tangible equity (RoTE) for 2025 was 13.3%, compared with 14.6% in 2024. Excluding notable items, RoTE increased to 17.2%.
Group CEO Georges Elhedery described 2025 as a year of execution against a simplified operating model. “2025 was a year of decisive action and swift execution, which is reflected in our strong performance. Each of our four businesses performed well and we have strong momentum across the bank. We are becoming a simple, more agile, focused bank, one that moves with the speed our customers need to navigate the modern world. We are delivering growth, investing for growth, and we are executing our strategy with discipline and precision. That gives us confidence in our ability to continue delivering for our shareholders,” Elhedery said.
HSBC is targeting a RoTE of 17% or above for 2026, 2027, and 2028, excluding notable items, and year-on-year revenue growth over that period, rising to 5% in 2028 on a constant-currency, excluding-notable-items basis. The bank intends to maintain a 50% dividend payout ratio on an adjusted earnings-per-share basis. For 2026, the group expects banking net interest income of at least US$45 billion and credit charges of around 40 basis points of average gross loans. It is targeting approximately 1% growth in target-basis operating expenses and plans to manage its CET1 ratio within a 14% to 14.5% range after rebuilding capital following the privatisation of Hang Seng Bank.
Within this framework, the outcome of the HSBC Life Singapore review may indicate how global banking groups balance insurance ownership, capital requirements, and partnership structures in Asia. Any transaction with Allianz, Daiichi Life, or Sumitomo Life via Singlife would affect competitive positions in Singapore’s life and health markets and could influence future bancassurance and protection strategies across the region.
