HSBC, Europe’s biggest lender and a prominent London-listed bank, has unequivocally reaffirmed its commitment to private credit investments. This definitive statement from an HSBC spokesperson follows closely on the heels of a Financial Times report, which indicated the banking giant had put on hold a substantial $4 billion plan to invest in its own private credit funds. The FT report itself emerged only a week after HSBC incurred a significant $400 million loss directly linked to the collapse of British mortgage lender Market Financial Solutions, an event that amplified broader jitters within the private credit market.
“We are committed to our asset management’s offering in private credit funds,” an HSBC spokesperson conveyed to Reuters in an emailed statement. The London-listed bank had previously announced the $4 billion private credit investment plan in June 2025. However, global regulators have since expressed heightened concerns regarding banks’ exposure to the rapidly expanding $3.5 trillion private credit industry.
The Financial Times report, citing two sources familiar with HSBC’s internal decision-making, asserted that the bank had not yet transferred any funds related to the proposed plan and held no immediate intentions to do so. This backdrop includes a period where wealthy investors have increasingly sought to withdraw their money from private credit vehicles. These withdrawals are largely fuelled by growing anxieties surrounding weakening lending standards and potential severe disruptions from artificial intelligence within the software industry – a sector where many private credit funds maintain significant exposure. In related developments, HSBC Chairman Brendan Nelson previously assured shareholders that the lender had “substantially completed” a thorough review of its lending policies and practices following the aforementioned $400 million impact.
