HSBC Holdings' Japanese banking unit plans to increase financing for government-backed projects as profitability in domestic corporate lending declines.

Funding for projects guaranteed by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation and Nippon Export and Investment Insurance "pay a margin of between 100 and 200 basis points more than the London interbank offered rate," Takashi Omura, director of project and export finance for HSBC in Japan, said in an interview.

That's more lucrative than offering syndicated loans in Japan, he said.