United Overseas Bank (UOB) has partnered with the Singapore Management University (SMU) to launch the finance industry’s first tertiary education programme designed for small business bankers.
As Singapore’s small businesses expand into new markets, they may face challenges such as international trade risk, complex customs regulations or having access to increased working capital. Taking into account these difficulties, the UOB-SMU Banker’s Executive Certificate programme will impart specialist skills and knowledge necessary for bankers to meet the expansion demands of small businesses.
The course combines classroom-based study in the areas of credit and risk management, trade financing and regional regulatory frameworks with practical skills training. Small businesses form the backbone of Singapore’s economy, accounting for 99 per cent of local enterprises. Of the 28,000 local businesses that expanded overseas in 2014, more than 80 per cent were small-to-medium enterprises.
According to Mr Victor Lee, Managing Director and Head of Business Banking, UOB Group, many small businesses are looking at overseas markets to fuel their growth and UOB is committed to helping its customers expand successfully and meet their growth ambitions. “We expect a greater number of our small business customers to expand overseas in the next three years and as a result, their banking and business needs are changing. Small businesses need bankers with specialist skills who understand what it takes to do business across borders, whether it is in managing foreign exchange risk or navigating the regulatory landscape in different markets. This is why the UOBSMU Banker’s Executive Certificate programme is timely, important and progressive as graduates will develop the skills necessary for the future.”
UOB defines ‘small businesses’ as companies with an annual turnover of $20 million and below. The UOB-SMU Banker’s Executive Certificate is part of a two-year employee training programme designed to guide Business Banking sales employees through the elementary, intermediate and advanced stages of small business banking, from on-boarding customers to risk management.
