HSBC Egypt has started dealing in China's Renminbi (RMB) for its corporate clients, following approval by the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE). HSBC dealing in RMB comes against a backdrop of strong trade growth between Egypt and China – bilateral trade between the two countries was $13.8bn in 2018, a 27.7% increase on 2017. Trading in RMB can help Egyptian businesses secure more attractive terms when doing business with China. Commenting on the launch, Yasser Yehia, head of Global Markets, HSBC Egypt said, "As Egypt continues to strengthen its trade and investment links with China, we are delighted to be able to offer our corporate clients in Egypt access to RMB, a currency that is rapidly emerging as a global trade, investment, and reserve currency. We are already seeing strong interest from clients in RMB, with five deals completed at launch." HSBC offers a complete solution for managing foreign exchange flows and trade settlement in RMB. Through HSBC Egypt, corporates with exposure to RMB now have access to natural hedging of payables, receivables, assets, and liabilities as well as FX Forward and Options hedging solutions. "Businesses around the world are set to benefit from the next phase in China's strategy to boost its links with trading partners. Using RMB brings multiple benefits as it reduces foreign exchange risk, improves liquidity and cash management and facilitates trade with suppliers and customers in China who prefer to settle in RMB. This development also improves price transparency as Chinese counterparts do not need to include exchange or currency hedging costs in their pricing which will reduce trading costs, assisting companies to negotiate better dealing terms and prices," said Managing Director and Head of Global Banking, HSBC Egypt, Helmy Ghazi. HSBC Group General Manager, Deputy Chairperson and CEO HSBC Bank Egypt, Jacques-Emmanuel Blanchet, said, "Our universal banking model and global network put us in a unique position to meet all of our clients' financial needs as they engage in Belt and Road-related business. The comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Egypt have witnessed an unprecedented push in 2018, we believe the Belt and Road will create a wealth of opportunities for our clients in Egypt and we look forward to providing them with outstanding services across financing, advisory, risk management, and transaction banking." The announcement further adds to HSBC's RMB capabilities, which stretch across 50 markets. HSBC was the first bank to have the ability to settle RMB in six continents.
