Retail News CRM

Tag: Banking

  • VietinBank reports record profit

    VietinBank reports record profit

    VietinBank, Vietnam’s third largest lender by assets, has reported a 40 percent increase in standalone profits in 2020 to VND16.5 trillion ($715 million).

    This is its highest ever profit, and chairman Le Duc Tho, speaking at a meeting on Wednesday, attributed it to a surge in non-interest income and reduction in operation costs.

    While it has not published its financial statement for the year, the bank said in a press release that consolidated debts rose by 7.7 percent and non-performing loans were less than 1 percent.

    Its non-interest income jumped 35 percent, lifting it as a ratio of total income from 16.5 percent in 2019 to 20 percent.

    Income from services, foreign exchange trading and treasury operations increased by 12 percent, 24 percent and 70 percent.

    The bank targets 8-11 percent credit growth in 2021 and 10-20 percent growth in standalone profit and consolidated profit, and keeping non-performing loans to under 2 percent.

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  • DBS Opens Tech Academy in Upskilling Drive

    DBS Opens Tech Academy in Upskilling Drive

    The bank has launched an in-house digital training institute to equip its 5,000-strong technology workforce with cutting-edge skills for the future.

    The Future Tech Academy covers three technology disciplines: Site Reliability Engineering, Data Processing and Analytics, and Application Security, with more programs to be added over the next year.

    Having our own DBS Future Tech Academy gives us the agility to adapt our training curricula according to the bank’s needs and enables us to stay ahead of the massive changes around us, Jimmy Ng, DBS group chief information officer, said.

    The curriculum DBS is offering incorporates a blended pedagogical approach tapping on both external experts as well as internally developed content and certifications.

    DBS believes that this will enable employees to acquire the latest technology skillsets from external industry experts and immediately apply their new skills to relevant technology projects being rolled out by the bank, it said in a statement on Thursday.

    Growing the Talent Pool

    UOB and Standard Chartered have also previously launched programs to train their staff to adapt to the digital era, with the latter launching a learning hub in Singapore in December 2020 to boost the job readiness, career prospects and future competitiveness of its Singapore workforce.

    Growing the pool of technology talent in Singapore will place the country in good stead as we respond to the disruptions ahead, Ng said.

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  • More Account Suspensions for Exiled Hong Kong Dissident

    More Account Suspensions for Exiled Hong Kong Dissident

    Self-exiled Hong Kong dissident Ted Hui, who was recently spotlighted over frozen accounts at HSBC, has faced even more pressure from the British lender which allegedly canceled credit cards and «unlawfully embezzled» his funds without explanation.

    Ted Hui Chi-fung claimed that HSBC had not only canceled credit card accounts belonging to him and his family but frozen funds within it that resulted from refunded purchases.

    On the credit cards of both my family and myself, as a result of consumption refunds, the credit is more than the debit,» he said on his social media account. «The balances (around a few tens of thousands of Hong Kong dollars) are all private property protected by Hong Kong’s Basic Law. They are now unlawfully embezzled by HSBC without any explanation.

    While Hui’s claims about frozen funds could potentially be contentious, banks routinely assess and close accounts based on legal and compliance risk, especially with regards to politically exposed persons (PEPs).

    This is not the first time Hui has had his accounts frozen after similar moves were made against him and his family’s HSBC Premier accounts in December. At the time, local police issued an official statement confirming it had directed the account suspension over a money laundering and national security law probe.

    Although Hui’s claims that the latest credit card account cancellations were not requested by the police, an HSBC statement indicated otherwise.

    «We have to abide by the laws of the jurisdiction in which we operate and this case is no different,» according to an HSBC spokesperson who said further inquiries should be directed to law enforcement.

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  • Asia is Ready for a Digital Banking Revolution

    Asia is Ready for a Digital Banking Revolution

    In the next three years, Asia will see more than fifty new digital banks that will completely change the financial services landscape. That’s just the beginning, GFT’s Christopher Ortiz says. The region will also see broader adoption of blockchain technology with new private exchanges, multi-currency e-wallets and digital assets.

    Some of the incumbent banks understand that a technological revolution is inevitable and are working on a digital reshaping of their offering, with broader cloud adoption, end-to-end digitalization of processes and a revamped user experience. What’s interesting is the focus remains predominantly on the retail offering, while the institutional and wealth businesses are trailing behind, weighed by the concept of personalized relationships.

    While this remains true for the current core client base of the top wealth managers, some wealth players are underestimating the impact of the transfer of wealth to the next generation, who despite not being digital natives have already adopted a complete digital lifestyle.

    Some of the most prestigious Swiss private banks understand the impending evolution and have already started a deep transformation of their offering and services with a digital mindset, to smoothly transition to a real personal digital experience. Asian wealth institutions are poised to start this process and revisit the impact of these new services on their current revenue streams.

    This is no longer about providing digital channels; that was the goal of the past ten years. The challenge is to reshape business models and create revenue-generating digital processes and services. It is estimated that cloud migration can help financial institutions reduce 80 percent of their mainframe costs, but this is not a short migration process it could take several years. As such, our recommendation to CIOs is to start embracing the cloud and initiate the migration as soon as possible.

    By 2025, most banking services will be completely digitalized. Multi-currency e-wallets with multiple central bank digital currencies and stable coins will replace physical currency, and the broad tokenization of investment assets and real state will be a reality, while most cross-border transactions will be booked on DLT technology. Financial intermediaries will also have reinvented themselves.

    Banks, as we know them today, are undergoing a fundamental change to become IT platforms with a banking license. However, the overall readiness of current financial services incumbents is under par. With some exceptions, the risk-aversion mindset is likely to prevail, and the lack of a transformational change mindset will stretch the profitability and long-term survival of key incumbents.

    The median age in Asia is around 30 years old, and about 70 percent of the region’s population is underbanked. The scale and challenges are unprecedented.

    In addition, If we look at the amount of unserved retail wealth in Asia, the opportunities are limitless. Yes, Asia will witness a revolution. Now it’s up to the incumbents to jump on the wagon and help drive it.

  • UBS Celebrates Singapore Anniversary with Sustainability Splash

    UBS Celebrates Singapore Anniversary with Sustainability Splash

    The Swiss major is celebrating its 50th anniversary in Singapore in 2020, with the launch of an immersive art installation and new commitments focused on sustainability.

    UBS rolled out an immersive art installation focused on sustainability at its new office outside Singapore’s central business district at 9 Penang Road.

    It features 3,600 butterflies and birds made from repurposed bottles by UBS staff and other external partners. And the bank hopes the installation can make it into the Singapore Book of Records as the «largest display of butterflies made from recycled plastic bottles.

    According to UBS, the move to launch the art display was to demonstrate its commitment to sustainability and community engagement, with efforts extending beyond just cosmetics.

    UBS Singapore will match 10 percent of the total amount raised and continue to support and collaborate with our local community partners to make a significant and lasting impact to local communities,” said Michelle Per, UBS Singapore’s community affairs lead, according to a report.

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  • Stock market raises standard trading lot to 100 to cope with overload

    Stock market raises standard trading lot to 100 to cope with overload

    The Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange is set to raise the minimum number of shares that can be transacted in order from 50 to 100.

    It had planned to effect the change on January 18, but after testing and interaction with securities companies it has decided to advance it by two weeks to January 4 “if everything goes smoothly,” a bourse spokesperson said.

    Currently investors wanting to trade odd lots of 1-49 shares have to transact with securities companies instead of on the exchange.

    HoSE executives said securities companies are keen to make the switch and willing to speed it up.

    A standard lot of 100 is the norm in many countries in the neighborhood such as SET (Thailand), BM (Malaysia), and SGX (Singapore) consistent with international practices and reasonable given the current market conditions, HoSE said.

    The larger lot size is expected to reduce the load on the system at a time when market liquidity is at historic highs. Between December 17-28, the exchange had to halt trading completely for short periods of time as volumes approached VND14 trillion ($606.14 million).

    Le Hai Tra, head of its board of directors, said at a press conference last week that the exchange was receiving 3-12 times higher volume of orders than before.

    Although the system has backup capacity, it cannot cope with this sudden surge immediately, he explained.

    Before Covid-19 caused other asset classes such as property to lose their charm and redirected cash into securities, HoSE saw average daily trading of VND3-5 trillion.

    But in the last two months, it has surged to VND12-14 trillion as the benchmark VN-Index kept rising and approached the 1,000-point mark, a threshold it struggled to cross in the last two years.

    The VN-Index on Wednesday shed 0.18 percent to close at 1,097.54 points. Trading was worth VND13.5 trillion.

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  • Asia is Ready for a Digital Banking Revolution

    Asia is Ready for a Digital Banking Revolution

    In the next three years, Asia will see more than fifty new digital banks that will completely change the financial services landscape. That’s just the beginning, GFT’s Christopher Ortiz says. The region will also see broader adoption of blockchain technology with new private exchanges, multi-currency e-wallets and digital assets.

    Some of the incumbent banks understand that a technological revolution is inevitable and are working on a digital reshaping of their offering, with broader cloud adoption, end-to-end digitalization of processes and a revamped user experience. What’s interesting is the focus remains predominantly on the retail offering, while the institutional and wealth businesses are trailing behind, weighed by the concept of personalized relationships.

    While this remains true for the current core client base of the top wealth managers, some wealth players are underestimating the impact of the transfer of wealth to the next generation, who despite not being digital natives have already adopted a complete digital lifestyle.

    Some of the most prestigious Swiss private banks understand the impending evolution and have already started a deep transformation of their offering and services with a digital mindset, to smoothly transition to a real personal digital experience. Asian wealth institutions are poised to start this process and revisit the impact of these new services on their current revenue streams.

    This is no longer about providing digital channels; that was the goal of the past ten years. The challenge is to reshape business models and create revenue-generating digital processes and services. It is estimated that cloud migration can help financial institutions reduce 80 percent of their mainframe costs, but this is not a short migration process it could take several years. As such, our recommendation to CIOs is to start embracing the cloud and initiate the migration as soon as possible.

    By 2025, most banking services will be completely digitalized. Multi-currency e-wallets with multiple central bank digital currencies and stable coins will replace physical currency, and the broad tokenization of investment assets and real state will be a reality, while most cross-border transactions will be booked on DLT technology. Financial intermediaries will also have reinvented themselves.

    Banks, as we know them today, are undergoing a fundamental change to become IT platforms with a banking license. However, the overall readiness of current financial services incumbents is under par. With some exceptions, the risk-aversion mindset is likely to prevail, and the lack of a transformational change mindset will stretch the profitability and long-term survival of key incumbents.

    The median age in Asia is around 30 years old, and about 70 percent of the region’s population is underbanked. The scale and challenges are unprecedented.

    In addition, If we look at the amount of unserved retail wealth in Asia, the opportunities are limitless. Yes, Asia will witness a revolution. Now it’s up to the incumbents to jump on the wagon and help drive it.

    Lees ook:

  • Citi Registers Record-High Wealth Inflows in APAC

    Citi Registers Record-High Wealth Inflows in APAC

    Citi in Asia Pacific posted record-high net new money of $20 billion across its wealth management business in the region. This represents a 10 percent year-on-year increase, according to a statement from the bank, and pushes total assets under management across the wealth business to $238 billion with approximately one-third of billionaires in the region as its clients.

    The figures include the whole wealth business covering from emerging affluent to ultra-high net worth clients including Citi Priority, Citigold, Citigold Private Client, and Citi Private Bank.

    The Asia Pacific wealth market stands out in its scale and growth potential. And this is not a cyclical opportunity – it is structural, driven by the emergence of a vast middle class and the rapid development of regional capital markets, said Peter Babej, Citi’s APAC CEO. Along with macro-level asset growth, Asian customers increasingly require portfolio advice, design and allocation geared toward diversification of asset types and geographic exposures.

    Not unlike its industry competitors, Citi is also boosting investments in technology with a new mobile banking platform that boasts enhanced wealth management tools and user growth of over 1 million.

    As we grow our wealth operations, we are focused on first-rate service – and that means staying ahead in technology, Babej said.

    Clients increasingly want world-class advisory delivered on their preferred terms – online, face-to-face, or both. Our wealth centers, with world-class RMs leveraging digital wealth management solutions, are geared to delivering the customized value propositions that our clients require.

    Also not unlike others, Citi also believes that the human touch remains very much relevant in the wealth management industry despite rapid technological advancements. The bank’s relationship managers are currently trained by the Citi Wharton Global Institute, a joint executive education program launched with business school Wharton in 2015.

    We continually invest in both our people and our technology to remain at the forefront of this fast-moving business,” Babej added.

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  • HSBC Appoints Singapore Head of Securities Services

    HSBC Appoints Singapore Head of Securities Services

    The bank has named a longstanding executive as its head of securities services in Singapore, as part of its strategy to capitalize on Singapore’s position as a global-Asia Pacific fund gateway for institutional wealth.

    Noor Adhami, currently based in the United Arab Emirates as HSBC’s regional head of global liquidity and cash management and securities services, MENA and Turkey, will take on the new role from 1 February 2021, the bank announced on Tuesday in a statement.

    Adhami joined HSBC in 2004 and has held a variety of roles in Jordan and Dubai. In her new role, she will report to Brian Godins, Asia Pacific head of securities services and Gavin Powell, Singapore head of markets and securities services.

    Singapore is increasingly becoming a prime international wealth and investment center, Powell said, noting that Adhami’s experience will deepen the bank’s expertise in the Republic and enable it to better support its clients.

    HSBC has been progressively building out its wholesale banking capabilities in Singapore, which includes the launch of a new coverage division focusing on mid-sized non-bank financial institutions.

    In the past year, the securities services division has also launched Asia’s first digital bond issuance alongside Singapore Exchange and Temasek. It was also part of the first interest rate swap trade by an overseas institutional investor through the central counterparty clearing model in the China Interbank Market, and was a securities services provider for the first ETF launched under the Singapore Variable Capital Company structure.

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  • Standard Chartered Receives Enhanced Privileges in Singapore

    Standard Chartered Receives Enhanced Privileges in Singapore

    The recognition comes on the back of the U.K.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement, signed on Thursday.

    The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has granted Standard Chartered Bank (Singapore) enhanced Significantly Rooted Foreign Bank (SRFB) privileges, in recognition of the significantly higher degree of rootedness that exceeds the SRFB baseline criteria.

    As part of the U.K.-Singapore FTA, Standard Chartered will be entitled to additional customer service locations on top of the 50 it is entitled to as an SRFB.

    The enhanced SRFB privileges also give Standard Chartered the opportunity to secure an additional full bank license to establish a subsidiary to operate new or alternative business models such as a digital-led bank with ecosystem partners, which it has been planning as part of a joint venture with National Trade Union Congress (NTUC) Enterprise.

    Standard Chartered’s roots in Singapore trace back over 160 years when it set up its first branch in 1859 under its former name, Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China.

    Singapore is now the group’s operational hub, housing global businesses, technology and operations, and many of the bank’s leadership teams. The country is also home to SC Ventures, the bank’s innovation, ventures and fintech investments unit. The bank also plans to grow its international wealth business in Singapore and has invested S$8 million to train and upskill its workforce in the city-state.

    We have invested and grown in Singapore to be the global business and operations hub that we are today, and we look forward to playing our part in developing the country’s banking landscape, Bill Winters, Standard Chartered group chief executive, said in a statement.

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  • HSBC Co-Head of Advisory and Investment Banking Exits

    HSBC Co-Head of Advisory and Investment Banking Exits

    HSBC’s co-head of advisory and investment banking coves has left the bank to pursue a senior role outside of the industry after joining two years ago.

    Peter Enns has left HSBC, after relocating to Asia from London last year where he was last the global head of financial institutions group for the bank.

    Prior to joining HSBC, Enns spent 21 years with Goldman Sachs in various roles including as the head of its Canada business.

    Enns leaves both business areas in stronger franchise positions, with improved financial performance, said Greg Guyett, co-CEO of global banking and markets in the memo. I would like to thank Peter for his contributions to HSBC.

    According to the bank, a search will be launched to replace Enns whose responsibilities in the meantime will be assumed by Adam Bashaw, the other global co-head of advisory and investment banking coverage.

    Separately, the bank is also strengthening its Asia business with the relocation of its global head of fixed income research Steven Major from London to Hong Kong.

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  • UBS Private Bank Shuffles Top Executives

    UBS Private Bank Shuffles Top Executives

    The operating chief of UBS’ flagship wealth unit is leaving the job. His replacements will split oversight of the U.S. and rest of the world.

    Reto Wangler, operating chief to private bank co-heads Iqbal Khan and Tom Naratil, is leaving for a roughly year-long sabbatical from UBS, from February 1, according to a memo.

    He returns to the Swiss bank in a new role next year, the memo said. Wangler advanced to the job in 2018 through a mega-merger of its U.S.-based brokerage and wider, international private bank for the wealthy. A spokesman for UBS didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

    He will be replaced by Kate Newcomb as well as Wiwi Gutmannsbauer at the $2.6 trillion unit, effective February 1, according to the memo. Newcomb, who currently oversees operations at the U.S. wealth unit, will continue to do so.

    Meanwhile, Gutmannsbauer, who UBS seconded to Asia nearly three years ago to oversee operations for its regional wealth activities, will take on Switzerland and international. Gutmannsbauer will relocate to Zurich from Singapore in the second quarter of 2020.

    Both he and Newcomb have spent much of their career in operations: she began at Paine Webber, a predecessor brokerage, as an accountant in 1984 and moved to operations just before the financial crisis.

    Gutmannsbauer has held various operations roles in the private bank. With their successful track records, they are ideally suited to further strengthen our digital capabilities and front-to-back efficiency, private bank co-heads Khan and Naratil wrote in the memo to staff.

  • HSBC Securities Services Joins BlackRock’s Provider Network

    HSBC Securities Services Joins BlackRock’s Provider Network

    The move allows asset managers and asset owners to connect seamlessly with HSBC through a single platform.

    HSBC on Tuesday announced that it will offer access to its Securities Services’ products via «Aladdin» – a Blackrock-run platform that helps assets managers check risk in their portfolios, trade, manage data management, and other operational tasks, from the first half of 2021, starting in Hong Kong and Singapore.

    Aladdin – or asset, liability, debt, and derivatives investment network – was conceived by the New York-based firm in the late 1990s as an internal tool. Today, it is one of Blackrock’s most powerful tech tools that it sells to smaller rivals, in a bid to stave off pressure on its active management fund arm from cheaper index funds.

    Sebastien Danloy, HSBC Securities Services’ global head of asset owners and managers, said joining the network adds to HSBC’s capabilities to connect to its clients’ front-office platforms and to offer front-to-back solutions in an open architecture environment to the asset management community.

    Integrating HSBC’s middle office, custody, and fund administration services with Aladdin will help clients access real-time data, streamline their workflows, reduce their manual processes and improve their operational efficiencies, the bank said in the announcement.

    HSBC currently administers $500 billion in assets for 20 global asset managers who already use Aladdin.

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  • UBS CEO Ralph Hamers’ Fintech Trends for 2021

    UBS CEO Ralph Hamers’ Fintech Trends for 2021

    The Singapore Fintech Festival is currently discussing the hot new trends for the fintech business in 2021. UBS Chief Executive stayed in Switzerland, but he can be trusted to know where things are heading.

    Ralph Hamers – Mister Fintech among the banking CEOs – has been in charge of Switzerland’s largest bank, UBS, for about a month. He didn’t fly out to attend the Singapore Fintech Festival in person.

    Instead, he took part at an event hosted by Switzerland Global Enterprise, which on Monday had launched the information platform finance.swiss at an event billed as World Fintech Festival in Switzerland.

    He used his time to present an overview of the big trends in fintech in the coming year.

    1. Neobanking: Source of a New Business Model?

    As a CEO of a traditional bank, Hamers maintains the view that neobanks such as Revolut, Monzo, or N26 have no business model to speak of. Neobanks may be digital and mobile, but their sole characteristic from a business point of view is growth. But that’s hardly a business model to speak of.

    Hamers believes that the so-called Freemium-Model, which entails a basic free-of-charge service, won’t suffice to run a successful business. To be true, neobanks have so far defined themselves by the number of clients won as well as the number of financing rounds completed. But one day, investors will want to get a return on their investment. Hamers says time will tell how the new banks will manage to earn money.

    2. Robo-Adviser: Whereto Henceforth?

    Robo advisory seems doomed in Switzerland. They only work in connection with personal advice from a bank in a kind-of hybrid model. Hamers believes that robo advisers and algorithms have proven their ability to deliver good results. But only few people actually want to entrust their money to a robot. Therefore, the raison-d’être of robo advisers gets lost – namely the leveraging and the ensuing benefit of scale.

    To get clients to trust the robot advisory system, advisers have started offering personal consultancy services. The problem of how to scale the business remains though, Hamers says. He believes that efforts will be made to address the problem in 2021.

    3. Tokenisation: Huge Potential?

    UBS CEO Hamers pronounced himself a great supporter of tokenization and digitization of assets. He may have been obliged to say so given that the event was hosted by SIX CEO Jos Dijsselhof and Chairman Thomas Wellauer at the Convention Point. The digital exchange SDX aims to become the first regulated exchange for tokens and digital assets.

    Tokenization is a fintech trend with huge potential, Hamers said. UBS has been working on such projects for some two years. He believes that there is work to be done still to free the full potential of tokenization.

    4. Green Fintech: Two Trends Merged

    Green fintech – a no-brainer according to Hamers: fintech and sustainable investing are trends and combining the two is simply perfect. In Switzerland, green fintech is a trendsetter and has become a founding principle for the financial market strategy. In November, the government launched the green fintech network that brings to one table business, associations, risk capital, universities, consultancies, and law firms.

    One great example of what green fintech is able to is the application provided by Yova, where clients can engage in impact investing. Zurich-based Globalance Bank helps clients understand the ins and outs of green investing by displaying the emissions and energy use of a portfolio.

    5. Open Banking: Perfecting a Symbiotic Existence?

    Not a new trend, but one that might prove disruptive, according to Hamers: open banking. If banks don’t open their business to a third party, they risk disintermediation, the destruction of supply chains. If banks however choose to open their business, they can retain client access, even if the best offering for a specific service no longer is its own one. UBS is moving toward open banking, as was shown by its announcement on Monday that it will cooperate with finance platform Financescout24.

    Open banking is creating a win-win situation, says Hamers: fintech that lacks the resources to build their own customer base, receive access to an established market. And the banks get access to technology and digital services they couldn’t develop themselves.

    6. E-Identity: Key Behind It All

    The e-identity is a hotly disputed political issue, and not a trend. On March 7, 2021, Swiss voters will decide on the legal framework for a state-approved electronic identity. The contentious issue is the separation of powers between state and economy. Only the approval of a signature will remain a state prerogative, while private firms can launch an e-ID.

    Hamers understands the issue of data protection and demanded an international framework agreement on the protection of personal data when still at ING. But he equally firm in his belief that no digital economy can survive without an e-identity. It is the key to success behind any fintech trend, he said in Zurich.

    He may have read up on the fine print of Swiss direct democracy because if the electronic identity fails, many a fintech trend will founder. It would tend to take another two to three years before Switzerland will count on an E-ID. And that’s a long time in the digital economy.

  • Goldman Sachs MENA Head Retires

    Goldman Sachs MENA Head Retires

    Wassim Younan will retire from his position after nearly three decades with the bank and seeing its Middle Eastern expansion up close.

    Younan, 58, will retire by year-end, according to a report, and his role thereafter will be replaced by co-chief executive officers Fadi Abuali and Zaid Khaldi. The two will continue to retain their existing responsibilities in asset management and investment banking, respectively.

    Khaldi will relocate to Dubai and Abuali will stay based in London and split time with the bank’s MENA offices.

    Younan’s time with Goldman Sachs saw its expansion in the region since 2006 which included various milestones including the establishment of offices in Dubai, Doha and Riyadh as well as the achievement of key deals such as Saudi Aramco’s record $29.3 billion IPO earlier this year.