Our banking reform should return to its starting point
12 years ago when I deposited the first dollar into my POSBkids savings account (I'm still using that kiddy bank book till today) was the time when the mother of all bank mergers took place
DBS swallowed POSB (I like to use the word swallow instead of take over) in late 1998. It was perceived as a move to ensure survival back then by don't-know-who
To keep duplication of services from transpiring, POSB branches were shutted down one after another. Same goes to ATM machines as they started to look like an endangered species
There were lots of accounts which had little money in them resulting in penalties being implemented to make sure that there was a minimum amount in every account
Ultimately, customers/depositors had to waste more time to use their services. One might ask, so was that merger really necessary and was it advantageous to me at the end of the day?
Of course, everybody make mistakes. Same goes to a bank. Big losses in Thailand investments, High Notes 5 issue, Lehman Brothers scandal and many more
In 2001, DBS Bank acquired Dao Heng Bank of Hong Kong which ended up as some sort of joke in the financial world. The high price paid for the buying resulted in all Hong Kong banks' stock prices soaring overnight as it was thought that bank prices were undervalued
Singapore has only three local banks now. Numerous investors who got scammed by whatever products have no choice but to continue banking with the same organization which made them suffer losses
Banks are the safest place to store your money but also the fastest place to lose it. Parking your cash at Singapore Pools for a night after a soccer match is over may reap you more profits in a shorter span of time
The minimum amount rule should be gone and more ATMs should be built to better serve its customers
We should go back to basics on our banking reform
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