HSBC to expand call center, BPO operations

The HSBC Group plans to expand its call center and business process outsourcing (BPO) operations in the country.

HSBC officials recently relayed their plans to Trade and Industry Secretary Peter B. Favila during a courtesy call.

HSBC’s decision to expand its call center and BPO operations stems from the successful operations of its existing call center and BPO site in Filinvest, Alabang.

According to Favila, HSBC is keenly interested in placing its second site north of Metro Manila.

"HSBC was very much encouraged by the operations of its call center in Northgate Cyberzone which presently has about 2,000 seats," Favila said.

The DTI supports HSBC’s project and is encouraging it to further expand it non-core activities/back-office functions in the Philippines, specifically in finance and accounting.

During the visit of HSBC Electronic Data Processing (Philippines), Inc. officials led by its president David Sutton, Favila emphasized the Philippines’ strengths in BPO.

"The Philippines is now a premier location for IT-enabled services in the international market," Favila said.

Inaugurated on July 1, 2005, the P1.5- billion call center in the Philippines is HSBC’s 8th Service Center in Asia.

Other locations include India, Mainland China and Malaysia.

HSBC’s investment in the BPO sector was secured by a Board of Investment’s outbound mission in October 2002.

Favila said that this year more outbound investment missions are being organized by various government investment promotion agencies to lure in critical investments for the country.

"These missions are not only sent to heighten investors’ interest but to get firm commitments from companies, thus, our investment drive will be more focused on identified and targeted firms," Favila said.

Started in 1875 in the Philippines, the HSBC Group is represented in the Philippines through the Hong Kong Shanghai Banking Corp. Ltd. and its subsidiary, the locally-incorporated HSBC Savings Bank (Philippines) Inc.

HSBC Holdings Plc. is headquartered in London.

It claims to be the second largest bank by market capitalization and seventh largest in terms of asset size.

HSBC has 9,500 offices in 80 countries around the world.