Santander has today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with JD.com, China’s largest e-commerce company by revenue.

The MOU, which was signed today in London by Angel Rivera, Senior Executive Vice-President and Head of Retail & Commercial Banking, Santander Group and Tony Qiu, General Manager of JD.com Worldwide, will allow Santander’s small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) customers to gain access to the large Chinese consumer market via an online store on JD.com.

UK SMEs are scheduled to begin launching stores on JD.com in September, with SMEs from other markets where Santander has a presence launching later in the year.

Angel Rivera, ‎Senior Executive Vice-President and Head of Retail & Commercial Banking, Santander Group, said: “China has a large and ever-growing consumer base which provides a fantastic opportunity for any business wishing to export. We are therefore thrilled to be signing an MOU with JD.com which will allow our SME customers to build their presence across China via JD.com’s extensive network that is dedicated to providing Chinese consumers with quality products from across the globe.”

Tony Qiu, General Manager, JD.com Worldwide, said: “Santander Group will be a valuable and trusted ally for JD.com and retail partners to build successful partnerships to help access the potential of the Chinese market. The MOU signed between Santander Group and JD.com will provide a range of support services to SMEs interested in tapping JD.com’s 170 million active customers in China.”

Santander is passionate about helping businesses make the most of the incredible benefits that exporting can bring. The Santander Group has one of the most extensive international networks and offers an unparalleled range of products and services to help firms realise their global aspirations.

Santander Corporate & Commercial offers a comprehensive suite of solutions to help UK businesses and SMEs to export and find international trading partners and suppliers. This includes the award-winning Santander Trade Portal – a unique online tool for businesses that can identify where the best importing and exporting opportunities are for their particular products and services.

In addition, Santander Group operates a dedicated International Desk Network, which covers Santander’s 10 core markets in Europe and the Americas as well China and North Africa, where Santander has alliances, to support UK businesses that are ready to enter new markets. Santander Corporate & Commercial also offers UK businesses the opportunity to go on Trade Missions to key markets as part of its Breakthrough product suite. In 2015, Santander ran Trade Missions to Spain, Poland, Mexico, the US and the United Arab Emirates, and has already sent Trade Missions to China and Mexico earlier this year.