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Straits Times
08-08-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
Singapore's digital banks finding their niche in areas like SMEs as they narrow losses in 2024
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox The latest earnings reports from GXS Bank, MariBank and Trust Bank show an improvement from the previous financial year. SINGAPORE – Singapore's three digital banks serving retail customers – Trust Bank, GXS Bank and MariBank – appear on track to turn the corner more than two years after they started operations. All three booked a smaller net loss in their most recent financial year ended Dec 31, 2024, compared with the previous financial year. Their path to profitability remains challenging though, said Mr Tengfu Li, vice-president and senior analyst in the financial institutions group at Moody's Ratings. He noted that the Singapore market is small and many already have banking accounts and access to banking services. Despite the constraints, Trust Bank grew to become the fourth-largest retail bank by customer numbers in February, with around a million customers on its books. The other two players, MariBank and GXS, said they are after a different pie from the incumbents. The latest earnings reports from GXS, MariBank and Trust Bank show an improvement from the previous financial year. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore PM Wong calls on S'poreans to band together for nation to remain exceptional in National Day message Opinion Singapore must look ahead, prepare to ride next wave of change Singapore Four foreign leaders to attend NDP 2025 at the Padang Singapore NDP 2025: No ticket, no problem – here are some spots to soak up National Day vibes Singapore Non-invasive depression treatment TMS has helped engineer get his life back Business Singapore's digital banks trim deposit rates, mirroring moves by incumbent players Singapore Chief Justice allows founder of site that ran fake KKH story to be called to the Bar Singapore Chief Justice names law graduate who wanted anonymity after being denied Bar admission The trio report only full-year results so their latest earnings report was for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2024. GXS incurred a loss of $145.4 million, compared with $152.1 million in the previous year. MariBank booked a net loss of $51.3 million, an improvement of 1.7 per cent from its previous year when it had a loss of $52.2 million. Trust Bank, which is 60 per cent owned by Standard Chartered Bank and 40 per cent by the enterprise arm of NTUC, recorded a net loss of $93.4 million, lower than the $128.4 million in the previous year. Mr Tamma Febrian, director of the financial institutions group at Fitch Ratings Singapore, said it is within expectations for a start-up bank with four to five years of operations to still be making losses. The retail banking space in Singapore is 'fiercely competitive' and retail customers here are sensitive to prices, he added. Digitalisation has also reduced transaction friction , allowing customers to switch between banking providers relatively easily whenever they find better deals elsewhere. For example, when GXS announced that it will cut the interest rates on its main savings account to 1.08 per cent from Aug 6, some customers could be tempted to switch their funds to MariBank, which currently offers a relatively sweeter deal of 1.88 per cent a year . Customers can do so easily by just tapping on their phones. The money transfer is instantaneous, and this has been enabled by digitalisation. Mr Febrian noted that a lot of these customers also view a digital banking account as complementary to their main banking account, which is typically held with an incumbent bank. The digital banks know that they are operating in a crowded space. MariBank chief executive officer Natalia Goh said Singapore is heavily banked and there is not really an unbanked or under-banked segment here. But 'there are still certain market gaps and underserved needs' that are not met yet , she added . Ms Lai Pei-Si, group chief executive of GXS, said the secret sauce for success will come from 'finding that space' or the right target segment and solving the real problems for that customer segment. She cited GXS FlexiLoan as an example of how the bank developed the personal loan product in response to the needs of its target segment, who are new borrowers with little or no credit history. Ms Lai said 20 per cent of GXS' customers belong to this group. They are not served well by the other banks, she said. Mr Li from Moody's Ratings said the three digital banks have started to scale up their loan books. 'Apart from offering credit cards and personal loans to retail customers, Mari and GXS have also expanded their loan product suite to cover small and medium-sized businesses,' he added. Non-interest income will also grow further as the digital banks distribute more insurance and investment products, he noted. Besides expanding their product offering, the digital banks will need to leverage one of their key strengths – their ecosystem and a captive customer base, said Mr Li. In Singapore, all three digital banks are part of a broader ecosystem. GXS is with Grab and Singtel, MariBank with Sea and e-commerce firm Shopee, while Trust Bank is with NTUC. This ecosystem approach enables them to deepen engagement with customers so they stay on their platform. GXS works with its parent companies Grab and Singtel. Home owners get a data plan from Singtel when they move into a new home. They buy electrical appliances or new furniture through Grab, said Ms Lai. It is about offering 'the entire end-to-end solution' to customers, she added. In a similar vein, GXS launched an investment product on July 15 to give customers more choice over how they want to manage their savings with the bank. The GXS investment solution is a money market fund from asset manager Fullerton Fund Management and comes with group personal accident insurance coverage that is free for bank customers who invest in the fund. Ms Jenn Ong, group head of retail at GXS, said customers are rate-seekers. If they find a better rate elsewhere, they will take their money out. By giving them more options, hopefully they will continue their wealth journey within the digital bank, she added. Trust Bank launched its investment solution with five funds on Feb 21, 2025, while MariBank was the first of the three digital banks to offer an investment solution in September 2023. MariBank now has two funds. Ms Ong said GXS will be following up with another fund in the next six months. It will be higher risk for higher yields, but there is no decision yet on whether it will be a bond fund or a multi-asset fund that holds many different asset classes, such as stocks and bonds. GXS and MariBank are digital full banks so they can serve both retail and non-retail customers. Unlike its two digital rivals, Trust Bank holds a full bank licence that allows it to offer services similar to those at DBS Bank, OCBC Bank and UOB, including providing automated teller machines. Both GXS and MariBank have since gone into business banking for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). MariBank regards business banking as a natural extension of its range of services within its Sea and Shopee ecosystem. Ms Goh said: 'The whole idea is that the digital bank can serve them across their life cycle.' It may be a consumer trying to buy products, or it may be a seller trying to manage their business cash flow and working capital for day-to-day business needs, she noted, adding that any customer or business outside the ecosystem can also tap the service offering. GXS acquired Validus Capital, a digital lending platform for SMEs, on April 14, 2025, and rebranded it to GXS Capital. Ms Lai said GXS hopes to be able to 'embed further into the Grab, Singtel ecosystem' to serve a wider pool of business customers. Currently, GXS serves sole proprietorships in the open market and in the ecosystem. Ms Lai is aiming to extend its business offerings to other types of legal entities, such as private limited companies, 'in a couple of months'. Mr Li from Moody's Ratings said the expansion into the business segment makes financial sense as SME lending is high-yielding. The digital banks can also earn fees by offering other services such as cash management, he added. This will improve their chances of achieving the economies of scale required to break even, he noted. Fitch's Mr Febrian sounded a note of caution. 'There is probably a good reason why banks like DBS, UOB and OCBC do not want to serve these high-risk players,' he said. The digital banks will have to manage the credit costs associated with this segment of business borrowers, Mr Febrian added.
Straits Times
08-08-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
Singapore's digital banks trim deposit rates, mirroring moves by incumbent players
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Digital banks said that they are adjusting their deposit rates according to market conditions. SINGAPORE – Digital banks serving retail customers here have been trimming deposit interest rates in line with similar moves by the traditional lenders. The cuts reflect the ongoing decline of interest rates globally and could push customers to explore alternative investment options offering more attractive yields. Trust Bank, which is backed by Standard Chartered and the FairPrice Group, will reduce rates on its savings account from a maximum of 2 per cent a year on a cap of $1.2 million to 1.3 per cent from Sept 1, making its third cut so far in 2025. A Trust Bank spokesperson said: 'As market rates have gone down, banks have also lowered their deposit interest rates, and at Trust, we've done the same.' Savings account rates at Sea Limited's MariBank will drop from 1.88 per cent to 1.28 per cent from Sept 1 – also its third cut in 2025. MariBank chief executive Natalia Goh said that the move was to manage funding costs and support net interest margins, adding: 'We regularly review our pricing to reflect these broader market shifts.' GXS Bank, which is owned by a Grab-Singtel consortium, lowered rates on Aug 6 for its main account savings product and 'savings pockets' – a feature which lets a customer split his money into up to eight mini-accounts. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore PM Wong calls on S'poreans to band together for nation to remain exceptional in National Day message Opinion Singapore must look ahead, prepare to ride next wave of change Singapore Four foreign leaders to attend NDP 2025 at the Padang Singapore NDP 2025: No ticket, no problem – here are some spots to soak up National Day vibes Singapore Non-invasive depression treatment TMS has helped engineer get his life back Singapore Chief Justice allows founder of site that ran fake KKH story to be called to the Bar Singapore Chief Justice names law graduate who wanted anonymity after being denied Bar admission The declining yields on its primary savings account rate over the year illustrate the overall market trend of falling interest rates. The account was paying 2.38 per cent earlier in 2025 but that has steadily fallen, dipping first to 2.08 per cent, then 1.68 per cent and now 1.08 per cent. There have been similar moves from the major banks. UOB is cutting rates on its flagship UOB One account from Sept 1 – the third such reduction in the past two years. It follows OCBC Bank, which dropped rates on its 360 account from Aug 1 for the second time in 2025. Rates on the DBS Multiplier account remain unchanged at between 1.8 per cent and 4.1 per cent. Digital retail banks rolled out their services between 2022 and 2023, appealing to customers who seek competitive returns on their savings with fewer criteria, such as an initial deposit or having to maintain a minimum balance. Fintech industry analyst Zennon Kapron said digital banks must ensure customers are happy with the user experience in the face of declining deposit rates. 'If those rates drop and the user experience isn't compelling enough to retain customers, you could see deposit flight, especially from rate-sensitive savers who treat these accounts more like short-term parking than a primary relationship,' he noted. Mr Tamma Febrian, director of the financial institutions group at Fitch Ratings Singapore, said digital banks can offer appealing options. 'Some customers bank with them for their niche offerings, made possible by business synergy with their parents' ecosystems,' he added. MariBank, for example, offers unlimited 3 per cent Shopee coins on the e-commerce platform with the Mari credit card, while GXS account holders can accrue GrabRewards points when they use their account to pay for Grab transactions and Trust Bank's customers can earn Linkpoints through the FairPrice ecosystem. 'These propositions will likely continue to appeal to certain segments of new and existing customers,' said Mr Febrian. Ms Goh of MariBank said the bank continues to expand its customer base despite declining interest rates. 'While rate-sensitive users may react to changes, our analysis suggests that most consumers are aware of the prevailing market conditions and the broader interest rate outlook,' she noted. Trust Bank said customer numbers and loan and deposit balances continue to grow strongly. Deposit balances as at June 30, 2025, were 41 per cent higher than at the same point in 2024, while customer loans were up 95 per cent. Mr Kapron said squeezed net interest margins (NIMs) – the difference between what banks earn on loans and what they pay on deposits – could put more pressure on the digital banks as they move towards profitability, although their losses have narrowed in 2024. A GXS spokesperson said the bank is on track to break even by 2026 while Trust Bank and MariBank did not comment. Trust Bank is offering customers a choice among three plans to earn up to 2.5 per cent a year from September. It also encourages customers to consider other options like investment products to grow their money and offset inflation. Meanwhile, MariBank is seeing 'good interest' in investment products as customers look elsewhere for higher returns. Ms Goh said the bank has already seen demand from customers for simple, low-risk investment options such as those that allow investments from as little as $1. Maribank launched an income fund earlier in 2025 that pays a monthly dividend for customers who want to receive steady payouts. GXS has rolled out a digital investment platform for account holders looking to extract more yield on their spare cash. It also plans to add new funds to the investment platform to cater to different customer needs, said Ms Jenn Ong, its group head of retail. Mr Febrian said that digital banks need compelling products to stop customers drifting back to the traditional lenders, which continue to fight for market share. He noted: 'The challenge that these digital banks face is to come up with investment products that are more attractive than those offered by large incumbents, as the conventional banks are also making a serious push in wealth management as interest rates decline.'
Yahoo
16-06-2025
- Yahoo
Police, MariBank foil fraudsters' attempt to scam woman of $149,000
SINGAPORE - A 55-year-old woman almost lost $149,000 through a ruse, after she received a call in May claiming that her credit card was misused. The caller, who posed as a bank officer, claimed that the card had been used for unauthorised purchases in China, the police said in a news release on June 10. When the woman denied making any such transactions, she was transferred to another scammer impersonating a police officer, they said. The fake officer claimed she was a suspect in a money laundering investigation and threatened her with a 60-day detention if she failed to cooperate. Complying with the scammers' instructions, the woman transferred more than $49,000 to a MariBank account they provided details of on May 24. MariBank is a digital bank owned by shopping platform Shopee's parent company, Sea. The woman was falsely assured that the transfer would not affect her account balance, the police said. However, MariBank flagged the transaction as suspicious and promptly alerted the police's Anti-Scam Centre (ASC). ASC officers then convinced the victim that she had been scammed. The transferred funds were later recovered and the potential loss of another $100,000 was prevented, the police added. For more information on scams, visit or call the ScamShield hotline on 1799. Source: The Straits Times © SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction Discover how to enjoy other premium articles here
Online Citizen
16-06-2025
- Online Citizen
Authorities prevent $149,000 loss in impersonation scam targeting 55-year-old woman
SINGAPORE: A 55-year-old woman in Singapore narrowly avoided losing $149,000 after falling victim to a scam involving fraudsters posing as government officials. The ruse began with a phone call in May 2025 claiming that her credit card had been misused. The caller, who identified himself as a bank officer, alleged that the woman's credit card had been used for unauthorised purchases in China, the police said in a news release on Tuesday (10 June). When she denied making any such transactions, the call was transferred to another scammer pretending to be a police officer. The fake officer told her she was under investigation for money laundering and threatened her with 60 days' detention if she did not cooperate. Fearing arrest, she followed their instructions and, on 24 May 2025, transferred more than $49,000 to a MariBank account. The scammers falsely assured her that the transfer would not affect her account balance. MariBank, a digital bank owned by Sea Limited, flagged the transaction as suspicious through its monitoring system and immediately alerted the Anti-Scam Centre (ASC). ASC officers quickly intervened, engaged with the victim, and successfully convinced her that she had been targeted by scammers. Swift action by ASC and MariBank led to the recovery of $49,000 and prevented further potential losses of about $100,000. The police urged the public to stay vigilant and adopt precautionary measures, such as enabling international call blocking on mobile devices, activating two-factor or multifactor authentication for online accounts, and using the 'Money Lock' feature on bank accounts to safeguard savings. Members of the public are also encouraged to verify suspicious claims with official sources, such as the ScamShield Helpline at 1799 or the website Personal details—including SingPass credentials, CPF information, internet banking details, and One-Time Passwords (OTPs)—should never be disclosed to unknown parties. Individuals should also closely monitor transaction alerts sent by their banks. Anyone who suspects they have fallen victim to a scam should contact their bank immediately to block unauthorised transactions and make a police report. Suspicious accounts or chat groups should also be reported to the authorities. According to the Singapore Police Force's Annual Scams and Cybercrime Brief 2024, there were 1,504 reported cases of government official impersonation scams last year, resulting in at least S$151.3 million in losses. Victims aged between 50 and 64 formed the largest group, accounting for 28.6 per cent of cases. Scammers primarily contacted victims via phone calls and WhatsApp messages. For more information or assistance, members of the public can visit or call the ScamShield Helpline at 1799.
Business Times
10-06-2025
- Business
- Business Times
South-east Asia's tech unicorns may look more like banks in the future
[SINGAPORE] A couple of years ago, banking would not have been the avenue people imagined South-east Asia's tech unicorns would take in pursuit of growth and sustainability. Now, most of South-east Asia's tech unicorns have a bank of sorts under their belt – Grab has GXS Bank in Singapore, GX Bank in Malaysia and Superbank in Indonesia, while Sea has MariBank in Singapore and SeaBank in Indonesia and the Philippines. Sea also operates Ryt Bank as a joint venture with YTL Group. Even GoTo has backed Bank Jago in Indonesia. The banking sector is highly regulated, while tech startups, in contrast, often operate in regulatory grey areas where tech can disrupt current business models. The inroads that these tech-owned banks have made into their markets have been remarkable. For instance, the total deposits for Grab's GXS and GX banks have grown from US$479 million in the first quarter of 2024 to US$1.3 billion in Q1 2025. The three banks owned by Grab are projected to be collectively profitable by Q4 2026, according to Alex Hungate, chief operating officer of Grab. MariBank is also on track for profitability within the Monetary Authority of Singapore's digital bank licence framework of five years from launch. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Given these growth trends, there is potential for banking and financial services to make up the bulk of Sea and Grab's businesses. Currently, financial services make up 9.6 per cent of Grab's total revenue for Q1 2025, and 16.2 per cent of Sea's Q1 2025 revenue. These numbers can quickly multiply, as Grab and Sea ramp up their banking operations in emerging markets such as Indonesia. Almost half of all adults in that country are unbanked or underbanked, and about 36 million adults remain unbanked in the Philippines. Running their banks as digital banks has helped to cut costs in serving unbanked and underbanked customers. Technology is making risk management processes such as know-your-customer and credit modelling – in an environment where information is not readily available – cheaper compared with traditional banks. The opportunities in South-east Asia also include the many micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) that Grab and Sea's banks serve. Traditional banks incur high costs to serve this segment of business customers. Meanwhile, the new digital banks by Grab and Sea have also utilised technology to serve their retail customers, thus bringing costs down. It also helps that some of the MSME customers are also Grab or Sea merchants, allowing their banks to access data that traditional banks would not be privy to. The number of orders on Grab's food-delivery platform and Sea's Shopee platform gives the tech unicorns an edge in understanding these customers' monthly cash flow and business performance. Rising interest rates in the last few years have also allowed digital banks to make money off deposits. Coupled with this edge that Grab and Sea have over traditional banks, the foundation has been laid for their banking businesses to potentially overtake the original business units in terms of revenue. Grab's mobility and food-delivery businesses are highly dependent on the human factor, given the involvement of drivers, riders and food merchants. Similarly, Sea's Shopee business is equally dependent on merchants being willing to continue to sell on the platform. This is a factor that both Grab and Sea have less control over; they can influence such actors with incentives and subsidies, but this may result in inefficiencies. In conventional banking, once a customer is acquired, there is a level of stickiness that comes with participating in financial services transactions. This is unlike customers of delivery and ride-hailing services, who are driven by the lowest price, or with the riders, who may jump ship once the commission percentage changes. Grab and Sea would also wield more control over the supply side of the equation, compared with ride-hailing or e-commerce. With these factors in mind, it will pay to watch this space, to see if the next incarnation of Grab and Sea will be as banks rather than tech players.
