United Overseas Bank (UOB) claims to be the first bank in Singapore to digitalize the application process for its consumer banking products, including its deposit accounts, credit and debit cards, personal loans and secured loans such as car and home loans. In doing so, customers can apply for and open an account in less than 15 minutes.

Applying for a banking product is usually the first interaction customers have with a bank and often the lengthiest and paper-based. As such, UOB set out to remove the pain points customers typically experience. By digitalizing the application and account opening process which includes the integration of MyInfo, the Bank has removed the need for customers to submit multiple copies of documents and fill in lengthy paper-based forms. New customers are now able to receive a status on the application within minutes.

Now customers can authenticate their identity using their SingPass and consent to the use of their personal information as part of the application process. Instead of having to take time to fill in all the fields within the digital application form, the form will be immediately auto-populated with verified information from the national digital identity service.

UOB set a target to transform the application and approval processes for all of its retail products within three months, which it achieved.

Aaron Chiew, head of regional digital and mobile, Group Retail, UOB, says, "We chose to integrate MyInfo into the application process as it is the first experience a customer has with the bank. We know the pain points that customers typically experience when signing up for a new banking product and we have designed the digital application journey to ensure that their first interaction with UOB is simple, seamless and speedy.

"With the new process, our customers can start making transactions immediately with their bank account, purchase their dream home or car or make purchases on their new credit card5 quickly and conveniently. We are the first bank in Singapore to have fundamentally transformed the way consumers can apply for and get access to a full range of banking products."