Most Singaporeans unsatisfied with generic financing solutions from banks: survey

ABOUT 76 per cent of Singaporeans are unsatisfied with generic credit offers from their bank, with many seeking preferential pricing solutions and faster access to funds.

About one in four Singaporeans are "very willing" to disclose more financial information for better interest rates or lower fees, while more than half of Singaporeans are somewhat willing to do so, according to a recent survey by global analytics software firm FICO.

Consumers here tend to respond well to personalised offers from banks; about 73 per cent of those surveyed had a positive reaction to offers that took into consideration their circumstances.

While Singaporeans want banks to make them offers that consider their unique circumstances, many lenders here do not have a comprehensive pricing strategy that aligns with the organisation's overall business strategy, said FICO in a statement on Thursday.

To that end, banks can deepen their relationships with customers and build loyalty by offering better interest rates or lower fees in return for more financial information.

"Consumers are used to innovative pricing strategies from airlines, ride-sharing services and insurance companies, yet banks are lagging behind," said Aashish Sharma, FICO senior director of decision management solutions in the Asia-Pacific.

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He noted that there are opportunities for banks to move past single-product pricing and engage in improved cross-selling and increased product penetration.

"Banks may have gotten away with this so far due to the high inconvenience cost for customers of moving to a competitor, but with increased competition and the regulatory trend of open banking, we see this changing quickly in the next three years," he further said.

The survey also found that there is pressure to make the funds available quickly, as real-time transactional experiences on other platforms have led to an expectation of similar engagement from banks.

While most Singaporeans surveyed (56 per cent) expected access to loaned funds in a week, 22 per cent wanted access in a day and 18 per cent within the hour.

FICO's survey was conducted last December with 5,000 consumers across 10 countries and territories. The economies surveyed were Australia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.