HSBC USA rolls out multi-currency wallet

HSBC USA has launched a multi-currency digital wallet to help simplify the international payments made by businesses, by removing the need to use third-party providers for foreign exchange and international transactions. 

HSBC Global Wallet, which will target small and medium-sized businesses with international supply chains, has been rolled out initially in the US, UK and Singapore.  

The bank’s clients can send money in a number of currencies, with payment capabilities in euros, sterling, Hong Kong dollars, Canadian dollars, Singapore dollars, Australian dollars and Malaysian ringgit, and can hold and manage those currencies. 

The bank said that the digital wallet will be launched in other markets in 2022, while new currencies and enhancements can be expected later this year. 

The new multi-currency wallet uses the bank’s global payments network and is fully integrated with its existing business banking platform, enabling payments to be delivered to a beneficiary’s account “usually within minutes” of being sent. 

Drew Douglas, head of liquidity and cash management, US and Canada, said: “As we continue to focus on making international business easier and more efficient, this innovative solution will allow our commercial US clients to more effectively manage their foreign currency balances locally and to pay internationally like a local.  

“We are excited for the launch and looking forward to expanding the breadth of currencies as we move forward and to introducing receive ‘like a local’ functionality in the very near future.” 

Recent research conducted by HSBC for its annual Navigator survey found that 87% of US businesses see expansion into new markets as an immediate priority, while the same percentage said that digital tools and platforms were a priority, and 92% said they would be prioritising cash flow and capital management. 

Read Open Banking Expo’s Q&A with HSBC’s global economist James Pomeroy on the future of central bank digital currencies.