How HSBC plans to save small businesses £13m a year
HSBC has today announced it is reviewing banking tariffs for all UK business customers with turnovers of up to £2m, saving small firms across the country £13m a year in unnecessary charges.
The review has been brought about by HSBC's Electronic Banking Tariff, which recently increased its turnover threshold from £500,000 to £2m.
Around 190,000 HSBC customers will benefit from a change in tariff. This follows a trend of businesses turning to online technologies to increase their efficiency.
In a recent online survey from YouGov, 41 per cent of small firms said the effectiveness of modern technology was an important part of their businesses' futures and just over a third (36 per cent) believe they will rely on technology more heavily in the next year.
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HSBC's UK head of commercial banking, Ian Stuart, said: "The way that SMEs bank is changing in much the same way as they do business – it's going digital. This review will ensure that we support more UK businesses as they grow and navigate their way through the post-Brexit landscape."
The YouGov survey also found that many customers were either unhappy with their current tariff or unaware of its inefficiencies. Two-fifths (41 per cent) of small businesses have grown in total revenue, yet nearly half (45 per cent) feel their current service suppliers have been unsatisfactory and 42 per cent have not changed their service agreement within the last year, suggesting that many are not under the correct tariff.
"As our customers grow, naturally their focus shifts to other parts of their business. In some cases this means their initial product or service doesn't meet their existing or future needs," Stuart added.
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"We understand that business needs change over time, which is why we have proactively reviewed our business customers' tariffs to better support their growth. While this comes at a cost to the bank, we believe it's the right thing to do for our customers."
HSBC will review all its small business customer accounts, reallocating customers who would benefit from a change to a more suitable tariff. It will review each account every 12 months to ensure they are on the best tariff for their business.