Shenzhen-based Ping An Insurance Group has bought additional shares in British banking group HSBC amid the stock sell-off.
Ping An, through its investment arm Ping An Asset Management, has now raised its stake in the British lender from the previous 7.95% to 8%.
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The insurer has picked up 10.8 million shares in HSBC from the open market, at HKD28.2859 ($3.65) per share, according to the exchange filing dated 25 September.
This brings the total value of the shares picked up by the insurer to HKD305.5m ($39.4m).
Since 2017, the insurer has held a major stake in HSBC. The latest share purchase adds HKD27m to its gains.
According to a separate filing dated 27 September, the asset management giant BlackRock was listed as the next highest stakeholder in the bank, with 7.14% stakes.
HSBC rallies
The struggling lender was trading at its lowest in over two decades as it was grappling with loan losses, among other issues.
Its stock price fell to a 25-year low of HKD27.50 per share, ending last week with 8.9% loss, deflating its market value by HKD643bn ($82.96bn).
The latest share purchase by Ping An skyrocketed HSBC’s share price by 9.2% in Hong Kong, the highest since April 2009, recovering $6.8bn of its market value.
However, the share price is still down by half this year.
The sell-off
According to media reports, the sell-off was triggered due to concerns that HSBC could be reprimanded by China as it abetted the US investigations into Huawei Technologies.
The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) also named HSBC as one of the many banks linked to money laundering acts.
Reports emerged stating that HSBC, through its accounts, allowed several criminals to transfer millions of dollars from a Ponzi scheme, albeit identifying their fraud.
The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic also pushed the bank under pressure in its efforts to cut jobs, as well as provisions for higher loan losses.
HSBC also suspended its dividends and bonuses at the behest of the UK regulators.
Additionally, the UK and the UK lawmakers have criticised HSBC and Standard Chartered for backing Beijing’s national security law in Hong Kong.
Recently at HSBC
Earlier this month, HSBC cut 26 general banking fees for its retail banking customers in Hong Kong as virtual banks disrupt the banking industry amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
Last month, HSBC launched a digital application experience for its new and existing international customers.
