Here's a surprise - Singapore banks still have passbook accounts :). Yes, those little resin-bonded logs, which if we ask our fathers, will prove to be as valuable as a Passport!!!
My first few months in Singapore, having seen the passbooks and the banking services here, gave me the belief that Consumer banking in India was leagues ahead.
Although the difference in the levels of penetration of ATMs in the two countries is of the magnitude of the leagues between the Australian and Indian cricket teams ;), I got the feeling that Indian banks were far more fleet-footed in innovating on the gamut of services they provide.
India outpaces Singapore as far as accessibility of credit cards/loans etc. are concerned. And this in spite of the fact that credit risks in India are Goliath sized compared to the Lion city's levels.
But then, my biggest leveler came last week when I discovered the automatic passbook updating machine at Orchard!! Now, whether this is a statement of my utter ignorance of the external world, I ain't sure, but I found that particular piece of technology fascinating. These guys are fast moving to a world of fully automated, teller-less banking. The bank will be reduced to a 2 ft x 6 ft metal frame on a corner of the road!!!
So, till I come across any more differentiators, I'll take the score as 15-15 :).
Oh...just a good-bye note to all ya I-bankers!! Earn & hoard those insane Dollars as quickly as you can. It's not impossible to comprehend that some day some dawdler (relatively speaking) geek sitting somewhere in Redmond or California might just come up with another disruptive innovation obviating the need for the ridiculous human concentration that you guys are donkeyed around for :).
My first few months in Singapore, having seen the passbooks and the banking services here, gave me the belief that Consumer banking in India was leagues ahead.
Although the difference in the levels of penetration of ATMs in the two countries is of the magnitude of the leagues between the Australian and Indian cricket teams ;), I got the feeling that Indian banks were far more fleet-footed in innovating on the gamut of services they provide.
India outpaces Singapore as far as accessibility of credit cards/loans etc. are concerned. And this in spite of the fact that credit risks in India are Goliath sized compared to the Lion city's levels.
But then, my biggest leveler came last week when I discovered the automatic passbook updating machine at Orchard!! Now, whether this is a statement of my utter ignorance of the external world, I ain't sure, but I found that particular piece of technology fascinating. These guys are fast moving to a world of fully automated, teller-less banking. The bank will be reduced to a 2 ft x 6 ft metal frame on a corner of the road!!!
So, till I come across any more differentiators, I'll take the score as 15-15 :).
Oh...just a good-bye note to all ya I-bankers!! Earn & hoard those insane Dollars as quickly as you can. It's not impossible to comprehend that some day some dawdler (relatively speaking) geek sitting somewhere in Redmond or California might just come up with another disruptive innovation obviating the need for the ridiculous human concentration that you guys are donkeyed around for :).
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