HSBC saw its pre-tax profit fall to $18.7 billion in 2014 - a worse-than-expected 17% decrease over the previous year - leading chief executive Stuart Gulliver to state that last year was a "challenging" one for the world's second largest bank.
The bank has been dragged under the spotlight this month, possibly paving the way for yet another challenging year, as a result of the Swiss Leaks investigation by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, which unearthed information on thousands of account holders at the bank's Geneva-based subsidiary HSBC Private Bank (Suisse) and which claimed that the bank profited by holding accounts for "criminals, traffickers, tax dodgers, politicians and celebrities."
The presentation of its annual results was preceded by the controversial revelation that the list of people who held accounts in its Swiss subsidiary included Mr Gulliver himself. After The Guardian published a report based on leaked information, the bank confirmed that Mr Gulliver had a Swiss account in which he held his bonuses.
HSBC also reiterated its apology over the "unacceptable historical practices and behaviour" within its Swiss private bank.
"We deeply regret and apologise for the conduct and compliance failures highlighted which were in contravention of our own policies as well as expectations of us," it said,, adding that it will work "to ensure that we will never knowingly do business with counterparties seeking to evade taxes or use the financial system to commit financial crime."
The bank had registered a pre-tax profit of $22.8 billion in 2013, and analysts had predicted a modest 7% drop to $21 billion for 2014.
It blamed the negative effect of fines and settlements, as well as redress to UK customers and associated provisions, for the drop in profits.
The bank's shares are down by around 2% since the Swiss Leaks investigation surfaced, amid concerns that the bank may face prosecution or heavy fines over the allegations.
Among others, the UK's HM Revenue and Customs is looking into allegations that the bank helped people evade UK tax through Swiss bank accounts.