Good afternoon, friends, we’ve made it through another week together — and our reward is big news this afternoon to send you packing into the weekend:

THE BIG STORY TODAY-

📍HSBC Group is launching a “strategic review” of its retail business here, the global bank said in a statement (pdf) released this afternoon. HSBC Egypt’s commercial and institutional banking units are not part of the review and remain core to its strategy here, it said.

It’s difficult to name a multinational (or large Egyptian corporation) that doesn’t have a meaningful banking relationship with HSBC — and that doesn’t look set to change. “Egypt is an important market for HSBC and has strong potential for growth. HSBC will continue to focus on driving two-way trade and investment flows to support multinational clients operating in Egypt and enable domestic wholesale clients to achieve their international ambitions,” the bank said in a statement.

So is HSBC selling? Not necessarily. A review is just that: They’re weighing options. “The HSBC Group review will cover HSBC Egypt’s retail banking business only. It will consider all options for the retail banking business, and no decisions have been made,” the bank said.

BACKGROUND- HSBC Group is positioning the review as part of its “ongoing simplification globally.” It has been pulling back from retail around the world, opting to focus in most markets on corporate and institutional banking as well as its private banking or “wealth” business. That process got underway in mid-2023, when then-CFO Georges Elhedery put 12 countries on an “exit watchlist” — and accelerated after Elhedery became CEO of the global bank in 2024 with a strategy to streamline and drive growth in core markets including Asia and the Middle East.

The bank exited South Africa this year and is in the process of selling its retail arm in Australia. This follows its full exit from Canada in March 2024, which saw its operations sold to RBC. HSBC has also announced or concluded plans to fully exit or sell its retail operations in France, Argentina, Bahrain, and Bangladesh.

HSBC isn’t alone: Multinational banks are “right-sizing” their emerging market operations, shedding capital-intensive retail arms to double down on higher-margin institutional and wealth management businesses.

HSBC by the numbers: The bank opened here in 1982 as the Hong Kong Egypt Bank and today has 4.2k staff and 53 branches. Egypt is also home to an HSBC “global service center” that provides support to HSBC operations globally.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

🌐 There’s one story still leading the conversation in the global press this afternoon: The US sanctions on Russia’s two biggest oil companies. Last night, US President Donald Trump imposed Ukraine-related sanctions on Russia for the first time since taking office earlier this year, sanctioning the country’s two biggest oil companies, Roseneft and Lukoil. The decision follows the cancellation of a planned summit between the US and Russia, and a subsequent large-scale Russian aerial attack on Ukraine that killed at least six people and targeted both residential areas and energy infrastructure sites across the country.

Market reax: Oil prices jumped USD 2 on the news, extending gains early Thursday and rising by more than USD 1 per barrel. Following the news, Indian refiners — the top importers of Russian oil — are reportedly reviewing oil trade contracts to ensure the omission of any oil supply from either US-sanctioned Russian companies, according to sources cited by Reuters.

Hours prior to the US sanctions, the EU had also approved a 19th package of sanctions on Russia, which includes a ban on Russian LNG exports effective 1 January 2027, Reuters reports. The sanctions were met with gratitude from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who called for further pressure on Moscow, the Guardian reports.

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- We’re in for a warm start to the weekend in the capital, with temperatures set to peak at 34°C before cooling down to 22°C, according to our favorite weather app.

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