Earlier this month, HSBC's chairman and CEO were grilled for more than an hour on its strategy for dividends and growth during a shareholder meeting in Hong Kong that was attended by hundreds of its retail shareholders. The stand-off with Ping An highlights the challenges facing the British bank, as it seeks to navigate geopolitical tensions between the United States, Britain and China amid criticism from lawmakers in the West over the bank's activities in Hong Kong. Speaking to reporters at its results briefing on Wednesday, Ping An's Chief Investment Officer Deng Bin said the insurer maintains "an open and supportive attitude towards any measures, suggestions and opinions to improve" the performance and efficiency of HSBC. "As a unit of long-term cooperation, we hope it will do better and better. What happens in the future depends on HSBC, and we support it in all its efforts," Deng added. Co-CEO Tan said Ping An would back any proposals by investors that "support long-term value improvements" at HSBC.