DBS unveils fully automated online account service for firms

Open a corporate account in less than 15 minutes.

In a release, DBS Bank announced that it has launched a fully automated online account opening service for companies in Singapore, the first bank in Asia to do so. With this service, the time taken to open a corporate account will be significantly reduced from the industry average of about one to two hours currently, to as little as 15 minutes.

This is made possible by enabling the bank to have instant access to an extensive database from Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA).

Companies, especially SMEs which the online account opening service is targeted at, have welcomed it since the launch on 13 Dec 2013. This is because unlike personal accounts, opening a corporate account is a more complex process.

A company tends to need accounts in various currencies for their trading needs. Corporate accounts usually have more than one signer, and often with different levels of authority. In addition, different individuals in the company tend to have differing types of access rights to accounts on Internet banking, depending on their role in the company.

Add to this, the need for certain key persons in the company to hold corporate debit cards or ATM cards, and the amount of customisation required in opening a corporate account is magnified.

Finally, Director Board Resolutions need to be signed to authorise the whole process. Given all this, it is not unusual for the process of opening a corporate account to take about one to two hours at a bank branch or with relationship managers.