Half of new accounts at private banks in Singapore industry group opened in a month: ABS

[SINGAPORE] Nearly half of all new accounts opened at member banks of the Private Banking Industry Group (PBIG) were opened within a month, amid an industry push to reduce account-opening times, said the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS).

These account openings, which were completed from June to August 2026, were part of PBIG’s target to reduce the median account-opening time to within one month by end-2026, ABS said in a statement on Monday (Oct 5).

Gillian Tan, assistant managing director (development and international) of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and co-chair of PBIG, said: “The progress made in shortening account-opening times is a strong signal of the industry’s commitment to meet clients’ needs and strengthen Singapore’s competitiveness as a trusted and efficient wealth management centre.”

Observers previously noted that private bank onboarding time is a sticking point, with the broader onboarding process taking three to 12 months, particularly for complex cases.

MAS and PBIG set up an Account Opening Working Group in mid-2025 to tackle this issue, and most member banks have reduced their account-opening times since end-2025, added ABS.

The association noted that member banks have deployed artificial intelligence and digital tools in onboarding processes, adopted more risk-proportionate approaches to source-of-wealth due diligence and removed excessive processes.

In May, the PBIG developed and issued a set of process enhancement tips to address common client onboarding process-related challenges faced by banks.

In September, it conducted industry masterclasses on risk-proportionate approaches.

Lee Lung-Nien, Citi’s Singapore country officer and co-chair of the Account Opening Working Group, noted that the group has established a practical framework to harness technology and adopt risk proportionate standards at the same time.

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“This achievement reinforces Singapore’s dual strengths of efficiency and trust, further distinguishing it as a global hub for wealth management,” he said.

Shee Tse Koon, group executive and group head of consumer banking and wealth management at DBS and co-chair of PBIG, added that as PBIG continues to work towards its target, it will still prioritise risk-management standards equally with the client experience.

Shee said: “Trust is something we build together, and we will keep at it.”