HSBC Commercial Banking has launched the HSBC Connections Hub, a digital platform designed to enable business customers to leverage HSBC’s global network to connect with trusted buyers and sellers around the world.

Businesses in Canada, China, Hong Kong, India, Mexico, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the United States can now sign up to the multilingual HSBC Connections Hub for free. The service will be available to customers in France in the coming weeks and additional countries and territories will be added in the second half of the year.

“Researching and connecting with new business partners can be a daunting task, and one that gets harder with distance,” said Richard Davies, Global Head of Propositions for HSBC Commercial Banking. “We have designed the HSBC Connections Hub to help break down barriers for companies of all sizes that aspire to forge new business relationships at home and overseas. Every business interacting through the hub is an HSBC customer, giving users confidence that they already have one practical connection in common.”

Users of the HSBC Connections Hub join an exclusive network that is focused on building meaningful business partnerships. Customers create a business profile to represent their brand, including company information, products or services, locations, and business interests. A matching engine highlights potential buyers and sellers in other markets.

Users can also search and view the profiles of specific businesses using variables such as location, industry and products or services. Users can send a private message to their target business partners via the HSBC Connections Hub.

Businesses can also add specific opportunities to the network, which other users can filter based on product or service type, value and location. Personalized updates appear in a ‘What’s New’ section on each user’s homepage.

To help businesses navigate the world of international trade and boost their understanding of new markets, the HSBC Connections Hub hosts a library of country guides as well as fresh news and insightful articles.