HSBC offloads $25b home‑loan portfolio amidst Australia retail banking exit

Firmus, a private AI-infrastructure operator, secured commitments for a $2 billion equity raise backed by Nvidia (NVDA), Blackstone (BX), Coatue and Jane Street, nearly doubling its valuation to over $10.5 billion in four months. The funds will accelerate Project Southgate and Asia-Pacific expansion, including a planned 360 MW AI factory in Indonesia. Firmus also has a $10 billion debt facility led by Blackstone and Coatue.

Blackstone-led consortium agreed to acquire HSBC’s Australian home loan portfolio for AUD36 billion (USD25 billion), according to Blackstone and law firms. Blackstone Credit & Insurance, Blackstone Tactical Opportunities, and Blackstone Real Estate Debt Strategies will finance the purchase, with Pepper Money as servicer. Completion depends on regulatory approvals.

Bisnow reports Hudson Pacific Properties (HPP) and Blackstone face a $1.1B CMBS refinancing maturity on Aug. 9 tied to the Sunset Studios portfolio. The loan entered special servicing shortly before maturity. HPP said it secured a short-term extension while negotiating a longer-term deal. HPP has about $566M of the debt; the portfolio is 95.5% leased with Netflix committed through 2031.

Beijing began charging income tax on offshore insurance policies sold in Hong Kong, with early cases in Beijing and Hangzhou reportedly applying a 20% tax on policy earnings. FTSE 100 insurers and banks Prudential, HSBC, and Standard Chartered fell sharply after the reports. Prudential lost about £3.6bn in value, HSBC about £18.9bn, and Standard Chartered about £3.2bn.

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B) completed its acquisition of homebuilder Taylor Morrison (TMHC) on July 24 for $72.50 per share, valuing equity at about $6.8B and enterprise value near $8.5B. The deal integrates Taylor Morrison brands into Berkshire’s Clayton Properties Group. Article also compares Berkshire and Blackstone (BX) hedge-fund sentiment and valuation.

HSBC said its indirect subsidiary HSBC Bank Egypt signed a definitive agreement to sell its retail banking franchise to Emirates NBD Egypt in a deal expected to deliver about US$300 million in pre-tax gain, with roughly 43 branches, an ATM network and staff transferring. Completion is expected in 2H 2027 after Central Bank of Egypt approval. HSBC keeps its corporate/institutional banking in Egypt.