Singapore, 7 March 2017 – OCBC Bank, a leader in digital wealth management services, has become the first bank in Southeast Asia to pilot a robo-advisory service. Time starved investors will be able to invest in diversified portfolios of stocks and ETFs, using automated, algorithm based portfolio management advice. The platform offers a guided investment journey with regular rebalancing of investments portfolios – without having to interact with a relationship manager.

Portfolios of stocks and ETFs

With the launch of the robo-advisory pilot, select participants will be able to access the online platform and invest into two categories of investment portfolios, starting from as low as S$3,000.

The first category consists of five portfolios made up of Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and equities listed on the Dow Jones and Nasdaq. Customers first complete a questionnaire using the robo-advisory platform. This determines their risk profile and investment goals, enabling one of the five portfolios to be suggested to them. Thereafter, the platform will automatically monitor the chosen portfolio: Should economic and market conditions change and the performance of the portfolio diverge from the investment goals, investors will be alerted via SMS or email with proposals to rebalance their portfolio.

Thematic basket of stocks

The second category is designed to appeal to more savvy investors and offers them the opportunity to invest in a thematic basket of stocks listed on the Dow Jones and Nasdaq. The basket consists of stocks of technology companies – or fast-moving-consumer-goods companies, or leading Dow Jones companies.

The pilot robo-advisory service is provided in partnership with WeInvest, a Singapore-based Fintech firm. The pilot will first involve Accredited Investors but will later be opened up to non-accredited investors.

Head of E-Business for Singapore at OCBC Bank, Mr Aditya Gupta, said: "Robo-advisory is no longer just a buzzword in the Fintech space. With this initiative, we will bring simple, fuss-free and high-quality advice and investing to our time-starved customers. This is another step towards the ‘democratisation’ of wealth management – making wealth management simpler and more accessible for investors."

CEO of WeInvest, Mr Bhaskar Prabhakara, said: "We are glad to partner with OCBC Bank in rolling out our Digital Wealth platform. It vindicates our vision of enabling next-generation investment solutions for customers through partnerships with financial institutions, bringing scalable innovation in the wealth space".

This robo-advisory solution continues OCBC Bank’s strategic push into the Fintech space through open innovation with Fintech startups. It expands OCBC Bank’s lead in the digitalisation of wealth management services, making investments more accessible and understandable for customers of all backgrounds.