Trust Bank attracts more than S$1 billion in deposits, aims for breakeven by 2025
The digital bank is 60 per cent owned by Standard Chartered and 40 per cent by NTUC’s enterprise arm. It holds a full bank licence, which means it is able to offer services similar to those of conventional banks such as having physical ATMs.
Its competitors include GXS Bank, which is backed by Grab and Singtel GXS Bank, and MariBank which is owned by tech giant Sea.
Both GXS and MariBank hold “digital full bank” licences which permit the offering of online-only banking services to retail and corporate customers. These retail digital banks are also subject to a cap of S$50 million in deposits during the entry phase.
Trust Bank said it is confident that its growth rate can be sustained despite market competition and lingering economic uncertainties.
For one, the depth of NTUC’s membership programme of more than 2.4 million customers presents opportunities for growth.
The digital bank’s proposition is also “not based on one-time offers or a high acquisition gift or a promotional interest rate”, said Mr Sadhu.
Its positioning on daily savings which help with the cost of living, such as earning rebates and reward points at FairPrice supermarkets and other partner merchants, will remain “relevant and highly sustainable” in an uncertain macroeconomic environment, the CEO told CNA.
Beyond that, Trust Bank is hoping to get more customers on board through its offerings, which currently include deposit accounts, digital credit cards and family personal accident insurance.
With travel back in demand as borders reopen, the lender announced on Monday the launch of its travel insurance product underwritten by Income.
Mr Sadhu said Trust Bank also tries to solve existing customer pain points with its fully digital service. This includes allowing customers to have digital supplementary cards to share their credit cards in real-time, set spending limits and track expenses.
Moving forward, the digital bank intends to introduce instant loan products, enable GIRO payment services and other in-app self-services, as well as expand its insurance offerings.
“The continued growth of clients and the new products that we are introducing gives us a very solid footing for meeting both (the goals to be the) fourth largest bank by next year, as well as be profitable by 2025,” Mr Sadhu said.
1.2 tonnes of crystal meth seized in Songkhla
Narcotics police seized 1.2 tonnes of crystal methamphetamine, known as ice, and a convoy of of three vehicles at a house in Na Mom district, Songkhla province.
Narcotics Control Board secretary-general Wichai Chaimongkol released details on Monday.
He said the raid followed intelligence reports that a large quantity of drugs was being trafficked from the northern border to the South, for storage before being smuggled into Malaysia.
On May 24, the Insee 19 special operations team staked out a house at Moo 5 village in tambon Thung Khamin of Na Mom district before dawn. They raided the premises after seeing two pickup trucks and a car arrive there.
A search of the house found bags containing 900 kilogrammes of crystal meth. A search of the three vehicles found bags containing another 300kg of ice on the two pickups. All were impounded.
The occupants had already fled the property. There were no arrests.
Mr Wichai said the ONCB had informed the Narcotics Crime Investigation Department of Malaysia of the seizure of the drugs, so that it could investigate further and identify the intended recipients.
China says Mongolia main source of severe sandstorms this year
SINGAPORE: Mongolia was the main source of northern China’s worst sandstorms in five years from January to April, and may have contributed as much as 70 per cent of the dust floating over capital Beijing, China’s environment ministry said on Monday (May 29). Northern China is routinely hit by heavyContinue Reading
Rare albino giant panda spotted again at Chinaâs Wolong natural reserve
A rare albino giant panda – believed to be the only one of its kind – has been spotted again in the wild in southwestern China. Camera footage of the all-white animal was released by the Wolong National Nature Reserve in Sichuan province, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Saturday (MayContinue Reading
Singapore Airlines, Garuda Indonesia plan joint venture to boost passenger capacity
Singapore Airlines and Garuda Indonesia plan to enter into a joint venture to increase passenger capacity between the two countries, the flag carriers said on Monday (May 29), as post-COVID tourism in Southeast Asia ramps up. The proposed joint venture would allow the carriers to potentially synchronise schedules, improving passengers’Continue Reading
China prepares to send first civilian into space
JIUQUAN, Gansu: China will send its first civilian astronaut into space as part of a crewed mission to the Tiangong space station on Tuesday (May 30) as it pursues its ambitious plans for a manned lunar landing by 2030. The world’s second-largest economy has invested billions of dollars in itsContinue Reading
Higher risk of haze in southern ASEAN region between June and October 2023
SINGAPORE: Weather and climate authorities on Monday (May 29) flagged a higher risk of haze in the southern ASEAN region between June and October this year amid expectations of a more intense and prolonged dry season.
The ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC) made this announcement as it issued Alert Level 1, indicating the start of the dry season associated with the Southwest Monsoon in the southern ASEAN region.
“Persistent drier weather has been observed over most parts of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and southern Thailand in recent days, as the monsoon rain band moves north of the equator.
“With a high likelihood of El Nino conditions developing in the coming months, the dry season is expected to be more intense and prolonged compared to recent years, and extend into October 2023,” it said.
Hotspot activities in the southern ASEAN region are presently still subdued, with 14 and 13 hotspots detected in the southern ASEAN region on May 27 and May 28 respectively, said ASMC.
A few localised smoke plumes were detected in parts of the region on some days in May, but no transboundary smoke haze occurrence has been observed so far.
Malaysia detains Chinese ship linked to suspected illegal salvage of British WWII wrecks
A ship registered in Fuzhou, China and carrying 32 crew failed to present anchoring permits during a routine inspection in waters off Malaysia’s southern Johor state on Sunday, the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) said. Authorities found scrap metal and cannon shells on the ship upon further checks. The shellsContinue Reading
CNA Explains: Why did the Singapore dollar hit an all-time high against the Malaysian ringgit?
The currency had surged by 1.8 per cent on the day of Mr Anwar’s appointment on Nov 24 – the largest single-day gain since March 2016.
He noted that predictably, the ringgit has not seen similar gains since.
“In November, the ringgit strengthened primarily due to the semblance of political stability post-election. However, it has since depreciated due to external factors such as the (US Federal Reserve’s) highly aggressive interest rate hikes, the US banking crisis and geopolitical uncertainties,” said Mr Afiq Asyraf.
Mr Hafidzi Razali, a senior analyst with strategic advisory firm Bower Group Asia, added the weaker ringgit recently can be attributed to China’s ongoing economic recovery.
“Given that China is one of Malaysia’s largest trading partners, China’s economic recovery is important for the value of (the ringgit),” said Mr Hafidzi.
He noted that Malaysia’s exports had contracted 1.8 per cent year on year in the first quarter of 2023, and that this could largely be attributed to the decline in exports to China.
Domestically, Mr Hafidzi posited that Malaysia’s relatively weaker investment opportunities and impending structural reforms have held back the ringgit’s value.
“Private investment opportunities remain relatively limited; compared to developed economies such as the US and Singapore,” said Mr Hafidzi.
“The market is still anticipating whether impending structural reforms will be implemented (by the Malaysia government); particularly on large subsidy bills, low tax base and the ability to attract value-added foreign direct investments,” he added.
WHAT LIES AHEAD FOR THE SGD TO MYR RATE?
Analysts whom CNA spoke to added that the value of the Singapore dollar to the Malaysian ringgit could spike to new highs in the near term especially if the US dollar continues to appreciate.
However, some have stressed that the Singapore dollar to Malaysian ringgit value would stabilise given that the US government has agreed to raise the debt ceiling and that Congress would vote on the deal on Wednesday.
After the agreement was announced on Saturday, US President Joe Biden said that the deal was “good news for the American people, because it prevents what could have been a catastrophic default and would have led to an economic recession, retirement accounts devastated, and millions of jobs lost”.
The tentative agreement to suspend the US$31.4 trillion debt ceiling must now get through the Republican-controlled House of Representatives and Democratic-led Senate before June 5 to avoid a crippling first-ever default.
Pita would face cabinet dissolution petition
Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat will face a challenge over his qualifications and a request for the dissolution of his cabinet if he becomes prime minister, serial petitioner Ruangkrai Leekitwattana said on Monday.
Mr Ruangkrai said at the office of the Election Commission that if Mr Pita becomes prime minister he would file a petition signed by at least one-in-ten House representatives asking the court to consider the qualifications and eligibility of Mr Pita and his cabinet.
Mr Ruangkrai is a member of the Palang Pracharath Party, which still leads the caretaker government. PPRP came fourth in the May 14 general election. Mr Pita’s Move Forward Party won the most seats and has first option to form a coalition government.
“If Mr Pita overcomes hurdles and becomes the prime minister, I will proceed with a petition for the disbandment of his whole cabinet,” Mr Ruangkrai said.
On Monday Mr Ruangkrai was at the office of the Election Commission to testify in his complaint about Mr Pita’s qualifications. The complaint was based on Mr Pita’s alleged holding of 42,000 shares in iTV Plc, a registered but now defunct media company. The constitution prohibits shareholders of media organisations sitting in the House of Representatives.
Mr Ruangkrai said Mr Pita had run in the 2019 general election as a candidate of the since-disbanded Future Forward Party and the EC would need to ask the Constitutional Court to disqualify Mr Pita retroactively.
If Mr Pita were to be retroactively disqualified, there would be problems with the allowances paid to Mr Pita and his assistant MPs, Mr Ruangkrai said. He had asked the EC to do the retroactive investigation.
Disqualification would also affect Mr Pita’s approval of Move Forward candidates in the May 14 general election this year, and his status as his party’s prime ministerial candidate, Mr Ruangkrai said.
Ruangkrai Leekitwattana