OCBC webinar series to benefit 3,000 SMEs by year-end
More than 30 webinars have been held since the series, dubbed the OCBC Virtual SME Campus, began in April
Janice Heng
Singapore
BY the end of 2020, some 6,500 employees from more than 3,000 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are expected to have attended sessions of OCBC's webinar series, created during the "circuit-breaker" to equip firms with relevant digital skills for the pandemic.
The webinar series, dubbed the OCBC Virtual SME Campus, began in April. More than 30 webinars have been held so far, attended by over 5,000 employees from more than 2,500 SMEs, said OCBC.
The series was created with partners such as Enterprise Singapore (ESG), Amazon, Google and Shopee, with topics including how to leverage e-commerce and digital marketing.
Besides digitalisation, other topics covered in the series have included working capital financing support schemes; the impact of the Covid-19 Temporary Measures Act; the outlook for Asean and China; and how to strengthen business resilience for the post Covid-19 situation.
"A common piece of feedback from our customers, especially the smaller businesses and startups, is that they know that they have to
adapt quickly but are unsure of how to do so," said OCBC's head of emerging business and commercial banking cash Christie Chu.
"That is where OCBC Virtual SME Campus comes in - to fill that knowledge gap and help SMEs bounce back stronger from this crisis."
Other digital initiatives by OCBC Bank include the Start Digital Pack, offered in collaboration with the Infocomm Media Development Authority and ESG.
This gives SMEs free access, for at least six months, to human resource, accounting, digital marketing, digital transactions and cybersecurity solutions.
