HSBC takes on fintechs with UK investing feature aimed at younger clients

LONDON — HSBC is going head-to-head with fintech challengers in the wealth management space, launching a new investing feature aimed at a younger clientele in the U.K.

The British bank said Wednesday it was rolling out a tool on its mobile app that lets people invest in a range of ready-made funds. Customers will need to invest a minimum of GBP50 ($66.62) to be eligible.

“Around 389,000 of our customers aged under 35 have sufficient assets to invest but are currently not doing so,” James Hewitson, head of wealth management at HSBC U.K., said in a statement. “On top of that, 64% of HSBC customers are digitally active.”

The new service will be available on iOS and Android in the coming weeks.

HSBC already offers an online investment advice service in the U.K. Its entry into app-based wealth management comes in response to a flood of financial upstarts like Revolut and Freetrade, which are luring in younger investors with the promise of low-cost trading and an easy-to-use application.

This week, British online stockbroker AJ Bell said it plans to launch a new app called Dodl which allows users to trade shares without having to pay any commission fees.

So-called robo-advisors like Nutmeg and Moneybox, which offer automated portfolio management services, have also grown in popularity lately. Nutmeg in June agreed to be acquired by JPMorgan as part of the U.S. lender’s ambitions to launch its Chase retail banking brand in the U.K.