HSBC Launches New Embedded Finance Venture SemFi

HSBC has launched SemFi, a jointly owned venture with supply chain platform Tradeshift, to deliver embedded finance solutions to businesses operating on B2B e-commerce marketplaces.

The SemFi platform integrates digital financing directly into the procurement and trade workflows that businesses use to buy and sell goods and services. Rather than applying for credit separately through a bank, businesses can access financing options at the point of transaction within their existing procurement platforms.

The venture combines HSBC's banking infrastructure and balance sheet with Tradeshift's supply chain technology and network of business users. Tradeshift connects buyers and suppliers through a digital platform that handles invoicing, payments, and supply chain management, providing the transaction data and workflow integration points needed for embedded lending.

Embedded finance in B2B commerce has been slower to develop than its consumer equivalent, partly because business financing involves more complex credit assessments and larger transaction values. SemFi aims to address this by using supply chain transaction data to inform credit decisions, enabling faster approval and disbursement than traditional trade finance processes.

HSBC has been investing in technology-driven trade finance as part of its broader strategy to modernise its transaction banking services. The bank is one of the world's largest providers of trade finance and sees embedded solutions as essential for defending and growing its market position as B2B commerce increasingly moves online.

SemFi is structured as an independent venture with its own management team, allowing it to operate with the agility of a fintech while leveraging HSBC's banking licence and Tradeshift's technology platform.