A Hong Kong-based trade platform launched by HSBC Holdings three years ago with much fanfare has shut down after failing to build a commercially viable business, the London-headquartered bank said on Wednesday.
Serai, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Europe’s biggest bank, that connected small-and-medium-sized apparel makers with component suppliers worldwide, was HSBC‘s first investment in a non-banking tech startup.
“The decision to wind down Serai follows a thorough business review and is a purely commercial decision,” HSBC said in a statement to Reuters.
“We regret to inform you that Serai will be winding down all operations,” Serai said on the now-defunct website.
“Despite a huge amount of progress made by the team, it has proven difficult to build a commercially viable business. As a result, we’ve made the difficult decision to close our doors,” it said.
Reuters