Hong Leong Finance reopens more branches, SME centres, encourages going digital

HONG Leong Finance (HLF) announced on Thursday that it will reopen six branches and two SME centres but encourages customers to continue going digital for their financial needs.

This comes as it caters to the needs of an expected increase in customer traffic as Singapore enters the second week of Phase 2 of Singapore's "Safe Reopening", it said in a statement. 

Said HLF president  Ang Tang Chor: "We understand that customers may need to visit our branches and SME Centres as their daily activities resume. We hope the reopening of these well-located branches and SME Centres will enable our customers to fulfill their financial needs without the need for long travel. We have designated safe-distancing ambassadors at our branches as an additional safe-management measure."

By the coming Monday,  there will a total of 14 branches and seven SME centres open. The remaining 14 branches and five SME centres remained closed until further notice. 

Meanwhile, fixed-deposit services will remain available via non-face-to-face services through its online deposit instruction form. The forms can be submitted online and customers will be assisted by HLF branch staff through a phone call to "complete the transactions safely for them". 

Alternative fund-transfer options such as PayNow and Giro are available for loan payments, while cheque payments for loans have ceased at branches. In addition, HLF has since expanded PayNow usage for deposit placements into their fixed-deposit or savings accounts, and for withdrawals.

GET BT IN YOUR INBOX DAILY

Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.

Sign UpVIEW ALL

"We encourage our customers to continue using digital services such as the online deposit instruction form for the renewal of fixed deposits and PayNow for loan payment and deposit placement. This will minimise non-essential visits to the branches and SME Centres, for their personal safety and wellbeing," said Mr Ang. 

The branches and SME Centres resuming operations were selected based on customer footfall and customer preferences. They are: • Bukit Batok Central Branch • City Square Mall Branch and SME Centre • Hong Lim Branch and SME Centre • Jurong West Branch • Marine Parade Branch • Sengkang Branch

Business hours remain from 10am to 4pm on weekdays; priority is given to customers who are elderly, pregnant or have mobility issues from 10am to noon. Separate queues with seats will be set up for these customers where feasible.