Bank of Singapore partners NTU for training Private Bankers

The Bank of Singapore is partnering the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and the Wealth Management Institute (WMI) to launch a new training programme for its private bankers.

The collaboration will be the first NTU is undertaking with a financial institution to award an advanced diploma in private banking.

WMI has designed the curriculum, which includes modules such as investment products, alternative investments and international wealth planning. The panel of lecturers convened by WMI and NTU are senior practitioners in the financial industry, including Dr Aaron Low, the first Singaporean to be elected as the chairman of the CFA Institute Board of Governors. The inaugural cohort of 30 wealth managers from the Bank of Singapore, OCBC’s private banking unit, will begin the programme at the end of next month and are expected to graduate in November. The employees, who all have at least five years of private banking experience at the bank, will train during work hours.

It will take about 21 days spread across four months. Bank of Singapore chief executive Bahren Shaari said the programme will give private bankers robust training and allow them to develop their skills without sacrificing personal time. “The private banking industry is undergoing a period of radical change – with the global call for greater transparency, the evolving regulatory environment and the advancement of financial technology,” he added. “Constant upgrades through training and development are one of the key ways we can equip our people to stay relevant and be able to serve our clients better.”

The programme will be accredited by the Institute of Banking and Finance (Singapore) as an IBF Standards Level 2/3 Programme in wealth management – private banking. The IBF is the national accreditation and certification agency for the financial industry in Singapore, while WMI is a Government-led effort by Temasek Holdings and GIC that aims to raise the quality of wealth managers through academically rigorous and practical education.
A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on May 25, 2016, with the headline ‘New course for Bank of Singapore private bankers’