HSBC to challenge Revolut and Wise with new forex app
HSBC has introduced an international payments app and debit card in an effort to challenge fintechs Revolut and Wise for a slice of the booming market for wealthy customers.
The Asia-focused lender plans to release the app, called Zing, on Wednesday for iOS and Android.
The service, which will be open to non-HSBC customers, is set to launch in the UK and be rolled out in other countries in the coming months. The bank said Zing’s debit card could be used in more than 200 countries.
HSBC said that members could intially hold 10 different currencies in the app without point-of-sale conversion fees and make international transfers across more than 30 currencies.
Zing has promised “24/7 customer support with real humans”, as well as “transparent fees and competitive rates”.
Its first 10,000 members are set to receive rewards including a choice of fee-free currency conversions for transactions up to £1,000 or 20 fee-free international ATM withdrawals.
Nuno Matos, chief executive of HSBC’s global wealth and personal banking business, told Bloomberg that the bank was “attacking” the retail payments market, where fintechs have used cheap foreign exchange offerings to attract tens of millions of customers in recent years.
“Zing has a global ambition,” Matos said. “We want to establish ourselves as a global platform for international payments, which ties perfectly with our international payments strategy for HSBC and you should see us very soon in Asia, in the Middle East and in EU markets.”
Wise and Revolut currently dominate the market. Shares in London-listed Wise rose more than 50 per cent last year, while Revolut has forecasted 2023 revenue to surge nearly 70 per cent to some £1.5bn.
Shares in Wise fell as much as 6.8 per cent on Tuesday morning.
“It’s a bold move for us,” said Matos. “This is HSBC playing outside of its traditional perimeter of customers, and really attacking, if you want, of taking advantage of a contingent, which is big, is growing, looks like us, and it’s here for us.”
Matos hoped non-HSBC customers using Zing would consider doing more of their banking with the group.
James Allan, founder and chief executive of Zing, said a company poll of 2,000 UK adults found that 57 per cent had spent time living abroad or had aspirations to do so.
“Our research found that these people often have frustrations when sending, spending and converting money. That’s why now is the time for a new kind of international payments solution; one that combines cutting-edge innovation with the support of an experienced global bank,” he added.
News of the app comes after HSBC’s existing fee-free currency service called Global Money, introduced in 2020, has amassed hundreds of thousands and processed some $11bn of transactions in 2022.
Zing did not respond to a request for comment by CityAM on the app’s exact fees.
Foreign exchange: How does HSBC compare?
| Zing | HSBC Global Money | Wise | Revolut | Starling (debit card) | |
| Fees | Not fee free | Fee free | 0.43 to two per cent | Fee-free on weekdays up to £1,000 (standard) | Fee free |
| Exchange rates | Interbank rate | Interbank rate | Mid-market rate | Interbank rate | Mastercard rate |