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Thursday, 1 October 2009
CIMB woos retail clients with more products, services
Describing Singapore as the ‘missing link’ in its regionalisation drive, CIMB Bank is boosting its retail presence here with a host of new products and services ranging from credit cards to home loans.
CIMB woos retail clients with more products, services
Relatively high interest rates drawing customers
By EMILYN YAP 30 September 2009
Describing Singapore as the ‘missing link’ in its regionalisation drive, CIMB Bank is boosting its retail presence here with a host of new products and services ranging from credit cards to home loans.
CIMB Group CEO Nazir Razak was in town yesterday to launch the bank’s retail business. According to him, Singapore contributes just 2-3 per cent to CIMB Group profits today. By 2015, both Singapore and Thailand could contribute some 20 per cent to group profits.
CIMB Bank has a wide retail presence in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand, and clients who visit Singapore often have been asking for retail services here, said Mr. Nazir. The bank has 1,150 branches across these four countries.
But CIMB Bank Singapore - which does not have a Qualifying Full Bank licence - has just two branches and five ATMs. Mr. Nazir said that the bank tried to get regulators’ nod for it to expand its retail presence but the request did not pan out.
So instead, the bank decided to turn its ‘handicap’ into an advantage, he said. ‘Customers are going to be surprised by our relative value proposition because we build in our lower cost base into our product and service offerings.’
Overcoming its branch restriction, CIMB Bank Singapore started a mobile team of bankers to help clients with various transactions.
And encouraging results from the soft launch of some deposit services show that a large branch network may not be necessary, Mr. Nazir added. Since these services were introduced in January, the bank’s deposit base has surged to $590 million.
What drew customers were the relatively high interest rates offered. In an environment where fixed deposit rates hardly exceeded one per cent, CIMB Bank Singapore was offering 1.8 per cent for a period of time.
It is now counting on its StarSaver savings and current account to keep customers coming. The product offers a rate of 1.2 per cent, higher than those in many other banks. The average balance in a StarSaver deposit account is about $135,000 today.
CIMB Bank Singapore is also launching a range of home loan packages - one of which will not charge interest for every Sunday in the first year. On the highly competitive credit card front, its plastics will not come with annual subscription fees and users can receive cash rebates as straight deductions off their monthly bills.
The bank will be going head to head with many other financial institutions here but the business is ‘fair game’, said Mr. Nazir.
CIMB Bank Singapore CEO Mak Lye Mun acknowledges that the banking scene here is highly competitive but he believes that his bank ‘can carve out a niche’.
In line with its expansion, the bank plans to hire another 110 people by the end of the year.
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CIMB woos retail clients with more products, services
Relatively high interest rates drawing customers
By EMILYN YAP
30 September 2009
Describing Singapore as the ‘missing link’ in its regionalisation drive, CIMB Bank is boosting its retail presence here with a host of new products and services ranging from credit cards to home loans.
CIMB Group CEO Nazir Razak was in town yesterday to launch the bank’s retail business. According to him, Singapore contributes just 2-3 per cent to CIMB Group profits today. By 2015, both Singapore and Thailand could contribute some 20 per cent to group profits.
CIMB Bank has a wide retail presence in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand, and clients who visit Singapore often have been asking for retail services here, said Mr. Nazir. The bank has 1,150 branches across these four countries.
But CIMB Bank Singapore - which does not have a Qualifying Full Bank licence - has just two branches and five ATMs. Mr. Nazir said that the bank tried to get regulators’ nod for it to expand its retail presence but the request did not pan out.
So instead, the bank decided to turn its ‘handicap’ into an advantage, he said. ‘Customers are going to be surprised by our relative value proposition because we build in our lower cost base into our product and service offerings.’
Overcoming its branch restriction, CIMB Bank Singapore started a mobile team of bankers to help clients with various transactions.
And encouraging results from the soft launch of some deposit services show that a large branch network may not be necessary, Mr. Nazir added. Since these services were introduced in January, the bank’s deposit base has surged to $590 million.
What drew customers were the relatively high interest rates offered. In an environment where fixed deposit rates hardly exceeded one per cent, CIMB Bank Singapore was offering 1.8 per cent for a period of time.
It is now counting on its StarSaver savings and current account to keep customers coming. The product offers a rate of 1.2 per cent, higher than those in many other banks. The average balance in a StarSaver deposit account is about $135,000 today.
CIMB Bank Singapore is also launching a range of home loan packages - one of which will not charge interest for every Sunday in the first year. On the highly competitive credit card front, its plastics will not come with annual subscription fees and users can receive cash rebates as straight deductions off their monthly bills.
The bank will be going head to head with many other financial institutions here but the business is ‘fair game’, said Mr. Nazir.
CIMB Bank Singapore CEO Mak Lye Mun acknowledges that the banking scene here is highly competitive but he believes that his bank ‘can carve out a niche’.
In line with its expansion, the bank plans to hire another 110 people by the end of the year.
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