UBS and a local technology partner are teaming up to provide secured social chat communication to clients and advisors in Asia Pacific.

Nearly 3 billion people worldwide are active social media users, according to data from We Are Social in their Digital 2017 report. Around one billion people use WhatsApp monthly, while WeChat is used by nearly 850 million people, the data showed.

Swiss bank UBS claims these are important channels for their clients and the preferred channel for millennials.

Contemporary Communication

To meet this demand, UBS and Singapore-based technology firm FinChat said that they have entered into an agreement, while maintaining compliance standards.

The pair are to jointly develop a solution in EVOLVE – UBS Centre for Design Thinking and Innovation, that allows secured social chat communication between its clients and advisors.

Increasing Compliance Standards

Regulators across the globe are demanding that financial institutions remain compliant on data retention and archival, which made client-client advisor communications via social communications channels impossible in the past.

«It is important for us to break any impasse between the ever-increasing usage of social media platforms and rise in compliance monitoring standards. In the future we look to engage with thousands of clients through their favourite social messaging platforms,» said said Dirk Klee, operating chief and head of digital strategy at UBS' private bank.