HSBC boss Noel Quinn steps down as bank reports first-quarter profit that beat estimates thanks to sale of Canadian business

Noel Quinn said he would retire as chief executive of HSBC, after pushing Europe’s biggest bank to pay a larger dividend to its most important customers on the back of the second-highest quarterly profit in his five-years at the helm.

Quinn said it had been a “privilege” to lead the London-based lender for the last five years as it reported net profit down 1 per cent from a year ago at US$10.2 billion, or US$0.54 per share.