At HSBC, it was the previous Chief Executive, Noel Quinn, who set the wheels in motion and launched the restructuring process. In many respects, it was a well-ordered withdrawal from the Argentine, French, Greek, Canadian and Mauritian markets.

Quinn also had to thwart the activist ambitions of his main shareholder, the Ping An insurance group, when the latter campaigned for a separation of HSBC's European and Asian activities; it is the latter that generate the vast majority of the banking group's profits.

Its dual footprint is both a strength and a weakness: a strength because it enables it to post higher profitability than its European peers; a weakness because its performance remains below that of its best Asian rivals.

At the same time as abandoning markets where HSBC was uncompetitive, Quinn directed the Group's investments towards China. While the move was welcomed for a time, some analysts now see it as likely to backfire, given the fragile state of the real estate sector in the Middle Kingdom.

New CEO Georges Elhedery - formerly the Group's CFO - who took over the reins last summer, yesterday put these concerns into perspective. Not known for keeping his tongue in his pocket, he says he has no particular concerns on this subject. MarketScreener analysts also note that HSBC's provisions for 2024 are well within their long-term average.

In any case, Elhedery is staying the course set by his predecessor. The slimming-down process continues, and this time it's the investment banking division in Europe and North America that's being axed. The latter, it's true, has never really made a breakthrough; nevertheless, its more strategic activities in Asia and the Middle East remain with the Group.

In any case, the Quinn-Elhedery duo's ten-year track record is very positive. Interest margins are stable over the cycle, while income from fees and commissions - independent of interest rates - will increase by almost $6 billion between 2015 and 2024.

But the main achievement is the savings achieved. HSBC's cost structure is down by $8 billion over ten years. Remarkably enough, compensation is down by $1.5 billion across the cycle, and administrative expenses by $8 billion.

The supertanker HSBC benefits from elite management. In 2024, the Group will achieve its best ten-year earnings per share ever, at $1.2, twice its ten-year average. The same applies to dividends, with $0.9 distributed to shareholders, including $0.2 via a special dividend. Georges Elhedery has also promised a further round of savings to the tune of $1.5 billion by the end of next year.

Like other banks on the Old Continent - HSBC has been in the graces of investors for some months now. After a decade in which its valuation frequently dipped below x1 tangible equity, it is now trading at x1.3 tangible equity.

This is significantly better than BNP, which is still languishing at x0.8 tangible equity; but also significantly less than an Asian peer like DBS, which was for a long time a position in our Asian portfolio, and which remains valued at x2.2 tangible equity. This brings us back to the British-Chinese banking group's double footprint - the defect of its quality, and vice-versa.

At the dawn of possible interest-rate cuts, and in the face of the systemic risk that bad news from China could represent, its valuation, which has returned to its ten-year highs, will undoubtedly fuel the fears of the Cassandras.