V3 Group's Digibank Consortium Scores Rare Member
Lifestyle company V3 Group and its consortium have attracted the Singapore Business Federation in their bid to scoop up a digital full bank license in Singapore.
The Singapore Business Federation (SBF) will take a stake of below 10 percent in a V3 Group-led consortium that will bid for a digital full bank license, according to local media reports. The consortium, by the name of BEYOND, has five other members: V3 Group, EZ-Link, property group Far East Organization, Temasek-owned Heliconia Capital, and MSIG Singapore (whose parent is Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance).
Beyond's proposal represents «the combined strengths of some of Singapore's most established companies and their reach to small-medium enterprises (SMEs) and their workforce», said Gan Chee Yen, chairman-designate of the BEYOND consortium in a statement. The above image shows a prototype of credit cards for retail and SME banking, as envisioned by BEYOND, as part of the application for the digital full bank licence
SBF's Power Links
SBF's connections with the local SME segment is a boost for the consortium, given that the Federation represents about 27,000 companies, as well as key local and foreign business chambers. It is compulsory for all Singapore-registered companies with paid-up capital or authorized share capital of S$0.5 million and above to be members of the SBF.
Beyond aims to serve the needs of the SME community and their families through an industry-specific approach, helping them with financial planning through the use of «behavioral economics and innovative processes», said Gan, who is also the senior adviser to V3 Group's new unit, V3 Fintech.
Catering to Different Needs
«Together with my fellow incoming board members who have in-depth experience in risk management and digital banking operations in the U.K. and North Asia, we have developed a suite of innovative products and services to cater to the needs of digital natives, the gig economy, the silver generation and SMEs operating in different industries,» added Gan.
In December last year, SBF tied up with V3 Fintech to set up a digital academy known as Beyond Lab to help SMEs train their digital competencies. Beyond Lab will focus on areas such as data analytics, including that to support green solutions, and fintech innovations that can help Singapore businesses grow and expand in the region.
Three Contenders So Far
Beyond consortium is the latest of three contenders to have officially announced their applications for the two digital full bank licenses on offer. Holders of the license can collect deposits from retail customers, but need to be Singaporean-controlled, and to set aside S$1.5 billion in capital eventually.
The other two players which have confirmed that they have thrown their hats into the ring for the digital full bank license include Grab and Singtel, as well as a Razer-led consortium, as reported by finews.asia. The Monetary Authority of Singapore is expected to announce the results of the digital banking applications by mid-2020.
