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Michael Lalor (pictured), Country Head of Corporate with HSBC Ireland, explains how the bank has expanded its lending activity and what the future holds

In 2007, HSBC set up its corporate banking division in Ireland, right in the midst of the economic downturn. Yet even back then, it discovered that many corporate organisations were proving to be resilient to the harsh economic climate. Those with an international focus in particular continued to thrive.

Aside from servicing Ireland’s significant Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) contingent, particularly in the pharmaceutical and technology sectors, HSBC helped to open doors for many of these Irish Headquartered businesses to find a footing in new markets. Irish companies such as Glanbia and the Irish Dairy Board, now Ornua, were generating healthy exports by tapping into international markets.

Specialist Expertise

Since then, the Irish economy has proven to be more dynamic, more open and even more adaptive to change. HSBC has expanded its offering in Ireland to reflect these developments in the local economy and is now offering specialist expertise in the areas of Aviation Financing, Agribusiness, Non-Financial Banking Institutions and Commercial Real Estate.

Moreover, while the bank continues to support its core large corporate client base in Ireland, it has become clear that there is untapped potential in other parts of the Irish economy and in 2017, HSBC expanded into the Mid-Market Enterprises (MMEs) space, funding the likes of the Wexford based tech specialists Taoglas and Westport-based clothing company Portwest.

Globally, over the past decade we have seen economic power shifting from north and west to east and south. Economic analysts predict that by the middle of this century the collective size of economies currently labelled ‘emerging’ will have increased five-fold and surpassed those we now call ‘developed’.

In Association with

Facilitating Ireland/Asia Trade

In line with this trend HSBC played, and continues to play, an increasing role in Ireland/Asia business, both in relation to inward investment, and with outbound trade. In the area of Global Trade and Receivable Finance, HSBC supported Ireland’s largest food and agri-companies trade internationally and provided international supply chain solutions to one of Ireland’s largest dairy and beverage groups, helping them target Chinese markets with products such as milk powder.

Irish businesses are also responding to shifting geopolitical currents by adapting their trade strategies to focus on new markets and new opportunities. The recent HSBC report Navigator: Now, next and how for business found that Irish businesses are continuing to open new markets across the world. As an example, the UK’s importance as a trading partner for Ireland has declined, from 73% of Irish businesses seeing it as an important trade partner in 2018 to just 43% in 2019, while almost a third of Irish businesses are aiming to do business in North America, compared to one in 10 last year.

Sustainable Finance

Sector wise, sustainable investment is also set to take priority over the next ten years. It is estimated that the world needs US$90 trillion of sustainable investment in cities, land use and energy by 2030. One local example recently saw Ireland’s first ever Green Loan Principles (GLP) compliant loan created by HSBC for Singapore based property group Oxley and Dublin-based developer Ballymore, to part-fund buildings that are being built to internationally recognised LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards as part of the Dublin Landings project in Dublin’s North Docks.

HSBC has also supported Mainstream Renewable Power in the development of a significant portfolio of renewable energy assets in Chile as well as the Irish recycling and renewables company Panda. This demand for green infrastructure has seen HSBC allocate $100bn (€90.68bn) to sustainable financing by 2025, with $46bn deployed to date globally.