Standard Chartered Hong Kong wins big at ABF Retail Banking Awards 2024

The bank’s efforts and achievements have become a testament to its commitment to its colleagues and the communities it serves in.

The past year has seen economic slowdown and geopolitical tension adversely impacting retail bank asset quality, fee income and bottom lines. However, this has not deterred the retail banking franchise of Standard Chartered Hong Kong, achieving remarkable growth & record performance in 2023, witnessing a strong rebound, and capturing opportunities via disciplined execution of its business strategy.

Standard Chartered Hong Kong has continued to acquire new affluent clients at an accelerated pace and the client acquisition engine has been extremely strong. It has achieved a significant increase in its client base, with its Priority Private client base increasing by strong double-digit growth. 

Moreover, it has continued to develop new tools and introduce new features in the digital wealth space for its clients to manage their wealth on the go and at their fingertips through self-directed investment platforms. This has resulted in double digit growth in its affluent Wealth Management active clients, showcasing its success in driving digital adoption. 

In response to client’s changing behaviour, Standard Chartered Hong Kong continues to redefine its sales and service model, which focuses on automation, digitisation, and simplification to meet the fast-changing needs of clients. Its digital active and mobile customer ratio saw rapid growth.

Standard Chartered Hong Kong has also collaborated with established ecosystems such as AlipayHK and Cathay Pacific to facilitate digital sales and enhanced offerings for its mass retail and affluent clients respectively. 

Given the boundary reopening and the resumption of regular travel between Hong Kong and the Mainland, Standard Chartered Hong Kong has ramped up its efforts as well with the increased demand for cross-boundary banking and wealth management services. For instance, the fourth wealth management centre was opened in Admiralty, providing exclusive personalised banking services to local and cross-boundary affluent clients to help them plan their wealth and seize investment opportunities.

Investing in talent development

With its dedication to success, Standard Chartered also invests in its people to ensure a strong and capable workforce. The company has implemented various initiatives that create opportunities for engagement and connection.

These initiatives include building a network of alumni, retirees, and graduates, enabling it to showcase its culture and attracting promising talent from external sources. Simultaneously, it has made significant investments in talent development programmes, mentorship initiatives, coaching sessions, and leadership interactions to foster growth of our colleagues.

Moreover, the company aims to foster an environment where individuals thrive, driven by a clear purpose and shared commitment to excellence. As such, it has dismantled traditional rating-based systems and replaced them with a robust performance-led and feedback-driven culture.

By promoting a performance-driven culture, it has witnessed heightened engagement and pride amongst its colleagues as well as created an environment that values growth, collaboration, and achievement.

Driving a sustainable future

Standard Chartered has implemented a comprehensive set of initiatives to create a sustainable, diverse and inclusive workplace that supports the wellbeing and growth of its colleagues. It has also introduced best in class family-friendly initiatives, including enhanced parental leave and engaging ‘bring your kids to work’ events, fostering a supporting environment for working parents.

It also prioritises employee wellbeing through its holistic Programme Care offerings, encompassing initiatives and activities that address physical, mental, financial, and emotional wellbeing.

Meanwhile, the bank continues to be a catalyst for the attainment of sustainable development goals through innovative sustainable financing for our clients across the region.  

It is the first bank in Hong Kong to launch sustainable deposits for corporate and institutional clients and sustainable savings accounts for retail clients, as well as offering Green Mortgages on primary and secondary residential markets. It has also exclusively supported the first Greater Bay Area (GBA)-focused “Deep Decarbonisation Pathways and Transitional Finance” report, which has been jointly implemented by the World Resources Institute, Civic Exchange Policy Institute, Hong Kong Green Finance Association, GBA Green Finance Alliance and various renowned academic institutions. 

In the past year, Standard Chartered Hong Kong has also achieved its Net Zero carbon attainment target, decreased waste by 139 tons, reduced energy usage to 222kWh/m2/year and water usage to 0.16KL/m2/year.

With its ESG commitment, the company actively gives back to the community through co-creating and sponsoring various signature programmes, nurture future-fit fintech talent for the sustainable growth of the banking industry, donate to those in need, and encourage employee volunteering through sharing skills and expertise. It has achieved a record-breaking employee volunteering rate of 75% as of 2023.

Elevating digital customer experience

During the same period, Standard Chartered’s Bancassurance segment in China has made significant strides to enhance its customer experience with strategies centred around the fundamental objective of improving customer wellbeing and facilitating informed client interactions.

It has focused its efforts on empowering frontline staff with state-of-the-art tools for comprehensive goal planning, detailed reviews, and robust multi-channel execution capabilities.

Amongst the key service enhancements and initiatives it has launched is MyInsure, which enables relationship managers (RM) and insurance specialists to perform customer eligibility checks and permission controls, as well as generate portfolio review reports for improved KYC.

The bank also features the Video and Voice Solution, which allows clients to video call their RMs and enhance customer experience. This feature meets all Banca remote sales requirements and has undergone extensive testing to ensure quality.

It has also made several iterations to optimise the Banca sales process, now allowing customers to self-fill application forms, provide more detailed beneficiary information fields, offer more payment options, amongst others. This has met stringent regulatory requirements.

Meanwhile, its Hong Kong office has achieved the same goal with the launch of a groundbreaking DIY journey for its esteemed client, in collaboration with its insurance partner Prudential.

The journey includes the customer first being provided information on the product and also being able to generate indicative quotes to allow clients to gauge the investment and returns. They are then able to confirm the quote on the subsequent step and trigger a payment request from their account. As the policy is instantly issued, the client is informed by push notification and the document is delivered to their inbox.

It allows easy adaptability to provide best returns on the products, and reduces the need to do releases. It also enables tracking features to monitor customer behaviour, allowing the bank to track drop-offs and nudge RMs to actively reach out to clients and understand their concerns.

This has stood as an alternative to traditional term deposits that it offers to clients.

“As the financial landscape evolves, the best retail bank stands out amidst the intense competition, providing unparalleled services and solutions to the clients. That’s where our Bank shines. Our enrollment in this award symbolises our unwavering commitment to excellence and innovation, providing exceptional services and cutting-edge solutions to our valued clients, and reinforcing our position as a key player within the banking community,” it said.

This stellar performance has earned Standard Chartered the Employer Award of the Year - Silver, ESG Program of the Year - Gold, and the International Retail Bank of the Year - Hong Kong, Digital Transformation of the Year - China, and the Insurance Product Innovation of the Year - Hong Kong accolades at the coveted ABF Retail Banking Awards 2024.

Now in its second decade, the prestigious event acknowledges and honours outstanding entities that are reshaping the retail banking landscape through innovative solutions, retail products, digital banking breakthroughs, and exceptional customer experiences.

The ABF Retail Banking Awards is presented by Asian Banking & Finance Magazine. To view the full list of winners, click here. If you want to join the 2025 awards programme and be recognised for your company's cutting-edge products, services, and solutions that made a positive impact on your customers, please contact Julie Anne Nuñez at [email protected].