Banking – Page 49 – Retail News CRM

Pandemic Causes Virtual Banking Launch Delays

Hong Kong’s newly licensed virtual banks will look to delay their launches due to an ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Since the Hong Kong Monetary Authority issued eight virtual bank licenses last year and earmarked February this year for the final launches, the city has been victim to over 1,000 cases of coronavirus infections and four deaths.

With the exception of ZA Bank – jointly owned by mainland online insurer ZhongAn Online P&C Insurance and property developer Sinolink Group – no licensed digital lenders have fully kicked off for business.

Of the seven remaining virtual banks, three have made soft launches for trials – Ant Bank, Airstar Bank – jointly owned by mobile maker Xiaomi and Hong Kong-headquartered financial services group AMTD – and Mox.

The remaining four – WeLab Virtual Bank, Ping An OneConnect Bank, Tencent-backed Fusion Bank and Bank of China (Hong Kong)-backed Livi Bank – have yet to announce any launch dates, according to a report citing the pandemic as the cause for delay.

The outbreak of Covid-19 has inevitably affected the virtual banks’ preparation for the launch of the business, according to a statement from the HKMA.

Hong Kong is not alone in delaying digital banking launches in a region where various financial hubs have been vying to enhance their capabilities in the space including, most notably, rival Singapore. The city-state had originally planned to unveil up to five license winners from the reported 21 applicants in June 2020.

The delayed license issuance will allow applicants to] focus resources on ensuring monetary and financial stability and ensuring that financial institutions remain resilient, and able to perform their role in supporting businesses and individuals through this challenging time, the MAS said, adding it could resume the process in the second half of the year.

April 14, 2020

HSBC Names Asia Private Banking COO

HSBC continues to bolster its private banking business in Asia with its hire of chief operating officer, who joins from J.P. Morgan’s wealth arm.

Sharon Oh joins HSBC Private Banking as its chief operating officer, replacing Gaurav Rao, who recently relocated to London for another role within the private bank. In her new role, Oh will report to Siew Meng Tan, APAC head of HSBC Private Banking, and Anil Venuturualli, global COO of the business. A spokesperson for the bank confirmed the hire.

Oh was most recently with J.P. Morgan’s private banking arm where she was its chief of staff in the London-based global institutional client segment. Prior to this, Oh spent five years with J.P. Morgan Private Bank’s Hong Kong-based unit and was also previously Credit Suisse’s North Asia COO.

Earlier this year, HSBC merged its retail, wealth management and private banking business into a single $1.4 trillion unit – WPB – in a bid to drive double-digit growth in client assets and revenue in the coming years.

Oh will help us accelerate the delivery of our key initiatives and to harness the benefits of becoming part of WPB, Tan said in a statement.

April 8, 2020

HSBC Names Asia Private Banking COO

HSBC continues to bolster its private banking business in Asia with the latest hire of chief operating officer, formerly with J.P. Morgan wealth arm.

Sharon Oh joins HSBC Private Banking as its chief operating officer, replacing Gaurav Rao, who recently relocated to London for another role within the private bank. In her new role, Oh will report to Siew Meng Tan, APAC head of HSBC Private Banking, and Anil Venuturualli, global COO of the business. A spokesperson for the bank confirmed the hire.

Oh was most recently with J.P. Morgan’s private banking arm where she was its chief of staff in the London-based global institutional client segment. Prior to this, Oh spent five years with J.P. Morgan Private Bank’s Hong Kong-based unit and was also previously Credit Suisse’s North Asia COO.

Earlier this year, HSBC merged its retail, wealth management and private banking business into a single $1.4 trillion unit – «WPB» – in a bid to drive double-digit growth in client assets and revenue in the coming years.

Oh will help us accelerate the delivery of our key initiatives and to harness the benefits of becoming part of WPB, Tan said in a statement.

April 7, 2020

HSBC, StanChart to Scrap Dividends on BOE Orders

Recession fears drove the Bank of England to call the U.K.’s largest banks, including HSBC and Standard Chartered, to scrap dividends and share buybacks.

Alongside Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays, the two largest British lenders in Asia made statements to temporarily halt shareholder payouts and share buybacks for 2019 and throughout 2020 following discussion with the Bank of England. The five largest banks in the U.K. had originally planned for 7.4 billion pounds ($9.3 billion) in dividend payments over the next two months.

In addition, the BoE also ordered banks to scrap cash bonuses to prepare for a likely recession.

The PRA also expects banks not to pay any cash bonuses to senior staff, including all material risk-takers, and is confident that bank boards are already considering and will take any appropriate further actions with regards remuneration over coming months, said the BoE’s head of prudential regulation authority Sam Woods in a statement.

Whilst workers will undoubtedly feel the brunt of the economic malaise, numerous efforts are being made to shift some of the burden to others including corporates and their shareholders.

In addition to dividend cuts, banks have also committed to retaining jobs with HSBC, as well as a raft of global banking giants, recently announcing temporary halts to job cutting. The measures will retain costs that were due for unloading and over 60,000 jobs.

April 3, 2020

Citi Extends Relief Payouts to Hong Kong

Lower-income staff at Citi will receive payouts in line with chief executive Michael Corbat’s call to extend global support during the crisis.

Hong Kong-based employees with an annual base salary of HK$470,000 (US$60,622) or less will receive a one-time payment of HK$8,000 ($1,032). This follows the bank’s announcement last week to provide economic support to 75,000 staff globally including $1,000 to each worker in the U.S. with an annual salary of $60,000 or below.

This initiative is for colleagues who are more likely to face economic hardship in the current situation,» said Angel Ng Yin-yee, Hong Kong and Macau chief executive at Citi, in a statement. «We hope that our support will help lighten their load as they cope with other challenges and family priorities during this time.»

Citi also made a similar announcement in Singapore, highlighting relief measures to support retail and institutional clients such as interest and fees waivers, tenure extensions, alternative settlement arrangements, and loan payment reduction programs. And in support of the Singapore government’s latest financial relief program, Citi will also offer clients the option to convert outstanding unsecured balances from their Citi credit cards into low-cost term loans.

«We recognize the financial stress to our clients as a result of the COVID-19 situation,» said Amol Gupte, ASEAN head and Singapore country officer at Citi, expressing support for clients and the city-state’s government.

For the time being, global banks continue to demonstrate support for the global economy, especially the economically vulnerable, amidst a persistent coronavirus pandemic. In addition to payouts or loan-related relief, the industry has committed to temporary job cut halts, dividend cancellations and even free online classes for homebound children.

April 3, 2020

DBS Adds Online Classes to Relief Portfolio

The Singaporean lender continues to provide innovative digital support to locals affected by the ongoing pandemic alongside financial relief. To help cope with the crisis, DBS will offer free online supplementary classes for primary and secondary school students. In terms of financial relief, home loan payment relief and free Covid-19 relief insurance coverage will be provided, the latter of which has already attracted 600,000 customers.

And for SMEs, the bank rolled out a 6-month principal repayment moratorium on property loans and collateral-free digital business loan of up to S$50,000 ($35,000).

While the Covid-19 situation is an unfolding one, it is apparent that some sectors and individuals are being hit particularly hard,» said Shee Tse Koon, Singapore country head at DBS, adding that more relief measures will be announced next week. As the largest bank in Singapore, DBS is committed to joining the industry to help Singaporeans and SMEs tide through these challenging times.

More than just providing pure financial support, DBS has stood out for its creative approach to providing potentially effective relief.

In addition to online classes, the bank recently rolled out a homegrown digital food delivery platform to help its F&B SME client base boost revenues in dire times of need. Interested users will be supported by the bank for end-to-end processes from marketing and e-menus to payment and physical delivery.

April 2, 2020

UBS Boss Donates to Corona Efforts

Sergio Ermotti is donating 1 million francs towards pandemic relief efforts. The UBS boss is working from home in his native Ticino, which borders the hardest-hit area in Europe.

The Swiss wealth manager’s CEO said he has dispersed 1 million Swiss francs ($1.1 million) in personal funds to his family’s foundations to help with relief efforts. Ermotti is working from home in Montagnola, a small Swiss village overlooking Lake Lugano and near the Swiss-Italian border.

I hear about the difficult situation in hospitals and people who have lost members of their family. The situation is dramatic! Ermotti told Swiss tabloid Blick in an interview on Monday. His corona donation will be dispensed by a foundation he launched together with his wife and his siblings in 2011.

Ermotti said the funds will be routed via non-profit organizations to people in need of emergency funds. UBS itself has also been generous, donating 30 million francs for patients and families in Switzerland affected by the virus’ outbreak.

The crisis represents an opportunity for Ermotti to display UBS’ Swiss credibility: Now, we’re part of the solution and not part of the problem anymore, he told the outlet, alluding to Switzerland’s 2008 bailout of UBS.

Last week, the Swiss government unleashed a massive bailout, enlisting banks like UBS to help small businesses battered by the crisis. «We received 10,000 loan applications within 36 hours. By Sunday night, all of them were processed and roughly 1 billion Swiss francs approved,» Ermotti said.

UBS, like Credit Suisse, has pledged to donate any proceeds from the emergency loans to charity. Ermotti ends his nine-year tenure as CEO of UBS in November when Ralph Hamers, head of ING, takes over his job.

April 1, 2020

StanChart Offers Preferential Financing Rates

Standard Chartered on Monday said it will set aside $1 billion to finance companies that are providing goods and services to tackle the Covid-19 outbreak.

The lender plans to offer financing at preferential rates to firms that are manufacturers and distributors in the pharmaceutical industry, healthcare providers, as well as manufacturers of items such as ventilators, face masks, protective equipment, and sanitizers.

Clearly, there’s a cost for companies to switch into these hugely in-demand items, so it’s an area where we can help them get up and running more quickly. At the same time, we want to make sure that existing manufacturers and service providers get the support they need, said Simon Cooper, CEO of StanChart’s corporate and institutional banking division in a media statement.

Financing will come in the form of loans, import finance, export finance, or working capital facilities to help these firms tool up and get their products to market. The bank, which derives about two-thirds of its total operating income from Asia, is also trying to identify companies that may switch into, or add, anti-virus products to their output but have not indicated that they will do so.

Our industry teams are looking across our client base and, given our understanding of clients’ current manufacturing processes, we’re assessing which companies might want to consider adding these items to their production line, Cooper added.

March 31, 2020

Citi’s South Asia Head of Private Banking Departs

Citigroup’s South Asia head of private banking is leaving the firm at the end of March.

Jyrki Rauhio, Citigroup’s South Asia head of private banking, is leaving the bank at the end of March «to pursue other opportunities», according to an internal memo.

Citigroup confirmed the memo’s content and said the bank won’t replace Rauhio. Jyrki Rauhio performed the role of South Asia Head for two years and did a great job putting in place a platform for growth and wants a new challenge, a Citi spokesperson said.

Steven Lo, Asia-Pacific head of Citi Private Bank initially put in the North and South Asia structure when he took on the role of Asia Pacific CEO to help scale the business.

However, Jyrki’s role will not be replaced and all the South Asia Global Market Managers will now report to Steven. «As a result, this gives us the opportunity to relook the structure of the business and Steven Lo has decided to streamline it,» the bank spokesperson said.

Rauhio, based in Singapore, has been with the bank for 25 years in locations including Helsinki, Warsaw, New York, and Hong
Kong.

March 30, 2020

Standard Chartered Announces Co-Heads of New Unit

The new Financing and Securities Services unit brings together Securities Services (currently under Transaction Banking) and Portfolio Risk Management in the Financial Markets business.

Standard Chartered Bank has appointed Margaret Harwood-Jones, currently global head of Securities Services, and Emmanuel Ramambason, now global head of Portfolio Risk Management, as co-heads of its new Financing and Securities Services unit.

Harwood-Jones has been with the bank since 2013, and previously spent 10 years at BNP Paribas Securities Services. Hoornweg joined the firm in 2017, previously had stints at Brevan Howard, UBS, and Morgan Stanley, where he spent 17 years, according to their LinkedIn profiles.

The pair, based in Singapore, report to Roberto Hoornweg, global head of Financial Markets.

Financing and Securities Services will include all existing securities services activities including custody, clearing, fiduciary and fund services, and securities lending, as well as all portfolio risk management activities across prime services, money markets, central funding Ddsk, credit valuation adjustment and the modeling and analytics group, the statement said.

This would bring greater alignment of its Prime business within Portfolio Risk Management, and further enhance the synergy between Financial Markets and Transaction Banking, said Hornweg.

March 30, 2020

HSBC Puts Job Cuts on Hold

Less than two weeks after being named the permanent chief executive, Noel Quinn’s path to executing the group strategy is already being derailed.

The ongoing pandemic that will cause the bank to delay its 35,000 job cuts as part of a broader overhaul to reduce annual cost by $4.5 billion.

Because of the extraordinary impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have decided to pause, for the time being, the vast majority of redundancies associated with this program where notices have not already been issued said Quinn in an internal memo.

In addition to pausing job cuts, the note, which was confirmed by a spokesperson, also said the bank would freeze hiring with the exception of a handful of roles including a small number of front-line and business-critical roles and those already with written offers.

Any attempts to ax large numbers of jobs in the current environment will prove not only operationally difficult but also bear social costs especially as governments rush to up fiscal spending to prop the economy and support low-income earners.

The measures we announced in February to transform the bank remain crucial, Quinn added. The decisions we are announcing today enable us to better support our people during the present uncertainty while remaining focused on our ambition to transform the bank.

Elsewhere, banks are in fact joining governments in the economic battle to combat coronavirus headwinds. The most notable reported efforts to include American financial giants such as Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America which have offered to provide early payments and one-time payouts of up to $1,000 targeting workers at the frontline in branches, call centers and other operation centers.

March 30, 2020

DBS Postpones Annual General Meeting

DBS Group on Thursday said it would defer its annual general meeting (AGM) that was originally scheduled on March 31.

The move follows government measures that imposed stricter measures to enforce safe-distancing in social settings given the novel coronavirus outbreak. From 11:59pm on March 26, all events and mass gatherings must be deferred or canceled, regardless of size.

With this, pre-registrations previously opened by DBS to watch the webcast and for physical attendance on March 31 have ceased. Shareholders can get updates from DBS’ website regarding the AGM. «DBS apologizes to shareholders for the inconvenience and thanks them for their patience in these difficult times,» the bank said in a statement.

DBS will update shareholders of the new date for the AGM and the procedures for participation after the legislative amendments to facilitate the holding of the meeting have been passed, and the necessary arrangements have been put in place in order to implement the safe distancing measures imposed by the Ministry of Health.

The 24 March Ministry of Health (MOH) Notification states that with effect from 11:59 pm on 26 March 2020, all events and mass gatherings must be deferred or canceled, regardless of size.

ACRA, MAS, and SGX RegCo have also issued a joint statement on 25 March 2020 stating that all listed issuers are expected to comply with MOH’s safe distancing measures and that legislative amendments are being proposed for Parliament sitting in April 2020 in relation to the conduct of meetings (which include allowing issuers the flexibility to hold meetings solely by virtual means). DBS’ last general meeting was held on April 25, 2019, and saw a turnout of more than 1,000 shareholders.

March 27, 2020

Online-Only Banking Kicks Off in Hong Kong

ZA Bank – one of the eight recipients of Hong Kong’s virtual banking licenses – kicked off operations yesterday, marking the dawn of digital lending in the city.

The virtual banking arm of China’s ZhongAn Online P&C Insurance began operations, according to a statement, with a focus on offering competitive rates. Hong Kong dollar savings deposits at the digital lender will pay an annual intros rate of 1 percent – well above other traditional competitors which are paying as low as just 0.001 percent.

ZA Bank continues to lure new customers by paying significantly higher rates for deposits than traditional lenders which shoulder the burden of heavy overhead costs. In January this year, it reportedly offered as high as 6 percent interest rate for 3-month Hong Kong dollar deposits in an initial trial to attract customers – more than double the rate offered by traditional lenders locally.

Local regulators completed the virtual banking license issuances in April last year and more players are expected to launch in the near-term. This includes Mox which is jointly owned by Standard Chartered, telecom firms PCCW and Hong Kong Telecom, and online travel agency Trip.com. The virtual bank was reportedly undergoing beta testing by staff earlier this month.

According to one estimate by Goldman Sachs in 2018, 30 percent of Hong Kong’s total banking revenue – or $15 billion – were at risk of being overtaken by digital banks.

March 26, 2020

Ex-Pepsi and GIC Heavyweights Join DBS Board

A seasoned financier and a consumer goods veteran join DBS’s board in a time of «intense competition for digital and sustainability leadership».

Anthony Lim and Punita Lai join the board of DBS effective April 1 this year, according to a statement. The two join as part of a «renewal process» that will also see existing board members Nihal Kaviratne and Danny Teoh retiring on 31 March 2020.

In addition to serving the board, Lim will also become a member of the DBS’s board risk management committee and its executive committee. Lai will become a member of the bank’s compensation and management development committee and, subject to approval, its nominating committee.

Lim spent nearly two decades with GIC before his retirement in 2017 in senior roles including president of the London office and New York-based president of the Americas. Previously, he was a senior managing director at Bankers Trust Company where he spent more than a decade after a three-year stint with the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s New York-based office.

Lai joins with 30 years of consumer goods experience with a focus on strategy, marketing and leadership. Her previous experience includes working for Coca Cola in China and PepsiCo in India.

Lim is a seasoned financial markets professional with extensive global experience, while Lai brings with her a wealth of experience in the consumer goods sector, honed in Asia’s two biggest markets, China and India, said Peter Seah, DBS’s chairman. «Their solid credentials make them strong additions to the DBS Boards at a time of intense competition for digital and sustainability leadership.»

March 25, 2020

Barclays Announces New Heads In Asia

Barclays on Monday appoints a new Vice Chairman of Greater China Banking and Head of Technology in Banking for the Asia Pacific.

Carrie Chen has been appointed Vice Chairman of Greater China Banking while Sung-Min Chung has been appointed the new Head of Technology in Banking for the Asia Pacific at Barclays. Based in Hong Kong, Chen and Chung will be strengthening senior client coverage and meaningfully broaden Barclays’ client footprint in the region.

Both of these appointments are a clear demonstration of our continued focus and commitment to invest for growth in the region, said Vanessa Koo, Head of Banking for the Asia Pacific and Greater China at Barclays in a media statement on Monday.

Chen brings over 15 years of experience in investment banking in China. She joins Barclays from Morgan Stanley where she was a Managing Director in China coverage and has an impressive deal track record in both advisory and capital raising transactions for blue-chip clients across a wide range of sectors including FIG, Industrials and TMT. Before that, Chen was at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Macquarie Group and McKinsey & Co.

Chung joins Barclays from iTutorGroup as Group Chief Financial Officer. Previously, Chung was Head of TMT for ZZ Capital International. Prior to that, he was a Director in TMT at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. His experience spans a wide spectrum within the technology space, specializing in cross-border M&A and capital market financings.

March 24, 2020

Tag: Banking