HSBC launches new International Business Centres with Advanced Electronic Banking

HSBC has launched a series of new International Business Centres (IBCs) to help the rapidly growing number of small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) around the world who want to trade across border.

In the initial stages, trained specialists in seven locations: China, France, Hong Kong, India, Spain, UK and the US will, for the first time, manage the entire cross border account opening process for business customers, making it easier than ever before for them to establish a presence overseas.

IBCs are designed give business customers the benefit of Confidence: from knowing that their overseas requirements are being dealt with by a single bank; Experts: who understand all the potentially complex local regulatory requirements; Better control: seeing what is happening at both ends of a transaction; Complete Ownership: of an international transaction and the ability to track it from beginning to end and Speed: direct access to clearing systems rather than having to go through correspondent banks.

Alan Keir, Head of Commercial Banking at HSBC Bank, said: International Business Centres will make life much easier for the large and growing number of SMEs around the world that want to do business internationally.

HSBCs aim is to make it just as simple to trade abroad as it is to do business within your home country and the IBCs will go a long way towards achieving that.

The Centres will also provide additional support in the areas of relationship management and business solutions such as payment services, export factoring, international invoice finance, foreign currency loans, trade services, FX and electronic banking.