Even in the dogmatic private banking industry, digitalization is expected to outlive the coronavirus to become «the new normal», said Sonjoy Phukan, Bank of Singapore’s chief operating officer in a conversation with finews.asia.
Large sums, complex transactions and the demand for finer human exchange – and amenities – have traditionally locked the private banking client segment in as one of, if not, the most immune to digitalization within finance. Couple with this that within Asia, most offshore wealth represents just a fraction of overall wealth with the lion’s share held onshore across client markets outside of Hong Kong and Singapore.
But a coronavirus pandemic – alongside increased geopolitical and market uncertainty – has fuelled an accelerated surge in digital activities in areas such as content, communications or financial services. And even if calm returns to the broader environment, Bank of Singapore COO Sonjoy Phukan told finews.asia that digital adoption for high net worth individuals (HNWI) is likely here to stay.
«New Normal»
According to Phukan, his belief in that digital behavior’s new permanence, even among HNWIs, will be achieved due to a broader trend of contactless, immediate, on-demand access.
At Bank of Singapore for example, more than 70 percent of its clients accounts – the private banking arm of OCBC has assets under management totaling $113 billion, as of the end of June 2020 – have signed up to digital services, a strong increase from 50 percent at the end of January this year.
«[U]ptick in adoption is likely to outlast the pandemic as we expect to see a more digitally demanding client base globally in the new normal,» he said. «As they adapt to the new normal, our clients continue to look for seamless access to our products and services […] anytime and anywhere, with minimal physical contact or the need to travel».
Digital Evolution
At Bank of Singapore, the greater adoption rate has included increase activity in online views of research reports, remittances, payments and virtual events – an area Phukan claims has been «consistently oversubscribed». These virtual conferences include live outlooks, webinars and pre-recorded webcasts on market trends and investment opportunities.
Digital adoption rates were especially high amongst clients in Singapore, Malaysia and Greater China markets.
And the digital evolution of private banking clients has occurred not only for front-end functions but even for back-end processes. For example, clients at Bank of Singapore are increasingly leveraging its internal platforms to securely communicate and share relatively sensitive documents with relationship managers.
Training for the Future
In anticipation of continued digitalization, Bank of Singapore is increasingly focused on learning and development to ensure its staff are well-equipped for the digital era. Currently, they have full access to a suite of personal and professional development courses on platforms such as «Coursera», «LinkedIn Learning» and «Learn@IBF» programs, where they can obtain certifications in areas like Python programming, agile methodology and design thinking.
«In recent years, we have been equipping our bankers with relevant digital skillsets to meet the evolving demands of the digital world,» Phukan said.
«To facilitate this, we enhanced our online learning and development initiatives to include professional development, leadership and product training.»
