OCBC’s private banking arm, Bank of Singapore, saw a major boost in new clients and revenue from independent asset managers in the midst of a pandemic, according to senior market head Teresa Lee in a conversation with finews.asia.

«Independent asset managers (IAM) have been one of the major strategic focus for growing our business,» said Bank of Singapore’s Greater China and North Asia senior market head Teresa Lee in an interview with finews.asia.

According to the Singaporean private bank, the number of onboarded IAMs grew almost 50 percent year-on-year, as of November last year, with overall IAM revenue from the same period nearly doubling. This was owed in no small part to the Hong Kong IAMs business which has seen accelerated growth following the launch of a hub dedicated to the segment several years ago. 

«We have successfully set up our Hong Kong-based 'IAM Excellence Center’ in May 2018 to act as a hub to provide dedicated support such as onboarding, trade execution, services, marketing and more,» Lee added. «We have managed to see good progress in new relationships and client acquisition, especially for Greater China.» 

Digital Headwinds

Not unlike its competitors, the coronavirus pandemic has disrupted operations and driven digital transformation at Bank of Singapore. 

In a separate conversation with its global chief operating officer Sonjoy Phukan in mid-2020, he noted that over 70 percent of client accounts have already signed up for digital services. 

Similarly for the IAM segment, Lee noted growing adoption – close to 500 participants logged on to a market outlook for an online IAM Forum in April last year. 

Human Touch

Despite the digital gains, Lee echoed private banks’ industrywide belief that the «human touch» was unlikely to go extinct anytime soon.

«[D]igital capabilities can only accelerate and maintain some processes while others cannot be replaced,» she said. «I believe that the human touch continues to be key to maintaining relationships.» 

Examples of the relevance of high-touch services remain in areas such as wealth or legacy planning, where the bank hired seasoned veteran and ex-APAC head of the practice for HSBC Private Banking Joanna Ho last year. 

Greater China Bulls

In 2020, China was a rare case of growth amongst major economies at 2.3 percent, according to its national data, and mainland equity markets have been buoyed by tech, healthcare and other rallies.  

Similarly, Bank of Singapore has seen strong growth in assets under management across all Greater China client segments which posted a 17 percent increase as of the third quarter last year, outpacing the private bank’s overall growth of 5 percent to $116 billion.

Lee also expressed confidence that Hong Kong will maintain its hub status and that it will «always be an important financial center, especially for Greater China clients», adding that she observed no significant wealth shift to Singapore.