 HSBC saw underlying revenue growth slow |
Banking group HSBC has warned that the number of people going insolvent in the UK remains a growing problem. The bank said the trend of rising personal bankruptcies and individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs) was "unlikely to abate in the medium term".
HSBC's comments came as it said its overall financial performance in the three months to the end of September had been better than a year ago.
However, underlying revenue growth was slower than the first half of the year.
It blamed this slowdown on factors including a weaker performance from its investment banking arm.
For the first half of the year, HSBC saw pre-tax profits rise 18% to $12.5bn (�6.3bn).
Insolvencies
The latest official figures showed that a record number of people in England and Wales went insolvent between July and September.
The government's Insolvency Service said that, during the three months, 27,644 people went bankrupt or entered into IVAs to manage debts.
Insolvencies were 55% higher than during the same three-month period in 2005 and are now widely expected to top 100,000 for the entire year
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