(Reuters) -HSBC is preparing to report $1.5 billion of annual cost savings from the changes implemented under its broad restructuring initiatives on February 19, the Financial Times reported on Thursday.

Since the global financial crisis, HSBC has been scaling back its worldwide footprint, starting with exiting dozens of low-returning consumer banking activities, from France to Greece to Canada.

Under CEO Georges Elhedery, who replaced Noel Quinn in September 2024, HSBC is now overhauling its dealmaking and corporate advisory activities in the West, in a bid to boost returns and tighten its focus on Asia, where the lender already earns the bulk of its profit.

HSBC didn't immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Last month, the bank said it plans to wind down its M&A and some equities businesses in Europe and the Americas, accelerating a shift towards Asia in its biggest retrenchment from investment banking in decades.