Up to five new digital bank licences will be issued in Singapore, paving the way for non-bank players to break into a local financial services scene dominated by a handful of traditional providers. Industry and digital players have started to study how digital bank will complement their businesses.

Consultants have said a digital banking licence may appeal to telco Singtel, which is expanding beyond its traditional services into areas such as mobile payments. “We are open to exploring the feasibility of such an opportunity and will be reviewing the licensing conditions,” said a Singtel spokesman.

A potential entry by Grab – backed by Japan’s SoftBank Group – and others would mark the biggest shake-up in years for a market dominated by DBS Bank, OCBC Bank and United Overseas Bank. Last year, Grab teamed up with Japan’s Credit Saison to provide loans in South-east Asia.

Mr Reuben Lai, senior managing director of Grab Financial Group, said: “We will study the digibank licensing requirements closely, and are keeping an open mind as we assess how best to pursue this, including whether to work with suitable partners.”

Gaming hardware manufacturer Razer also expressed interest and will “definitely consider applying for the digital bank licence”, Razer chief strategy officer Lee Li Meng said. Razer considers this new digital banking license issuance timely as Razer has been growing its fintech business in South-east Asia.

We at NPN are excited on the possibilities and opportunities that this new development may bring about for our partners Singtel, Grab and Razer. NPN has been working with Singtel and Grab for different projects and will extend our continued support to these partners to fulfill their needs to the best of our ability. A relationship has been established between NPN and Razer. There are some exciting new services with this partner will be rolled out very soon and we share the excitement with Razer on this new development in fintech.

NPN is built on a vision to redefine retail by enabling seamless engagement between retailers, supplies and end users since 2009. NPN has built a retail ecosystem that blends digital products and services in a unified way that features the retailers, suppliers and end users at the center.
By harnessing the latest advancement of internet and technology, we have been benefiting our stakeholders and building up trust with our partners through our work and commitments over the years. Our consistency in our development and work ethics have resulted in the generous support by more than a thousand of retail outlets and reputable companies in Singapore.

Source: The Straits Times

NPN Editor
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