Standard Chartered will target tech-savvy young customers as it gears up to join Hong Kong’s virtual banking race, says CEO Bill Winters
- The 162-year-old lender is one of eight firms that won virtual bank licences in Hong Kong last year and is expected to launch the new services in 2020
- The lender’s virtual-bank services in Africa have attracted more new customers in the last 12 months than in the previous 12 years
Standard Chartered, the 162-year old lender, is ready to join the virtual banking race in Hong Kong with good prices and convenient services aimed at capturing the tech-savvy younger population, according to group chief executive Bill Winters.
The bank, which is based in London but generates much of its revenue in Asia, is one of eight firms that won virtual bank licences from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) last year and is expected to launch the new services in 2020.
It has introduced online-only banking services in eight African countries over the last 18 months, and has enhanced its digital banking services in Singapore and India.
Standard Chartered spent US$1.7 billion globally on its digitisation and IT costs last year, almost three times what it spent in 2015 when Winters first joined.
“We are very focused on developing digital services. The launch of our Hong Kong virtual bank will be a key strategy for our business,” Winters said in a group interview in Hong Kong last week.
Hong Kong’s first virtual lender, ZA Bank, which started operations in December, kicked off a price war last week by offering a 6.8 per cent interest rate on three-month time deposits for up to 2,000 customers, much higher than traditional lenders’ 2 to 3 per cent for large deposits.
