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Independent Singapore
08-07-2025
- Business
- Independent Singapore
OCBC Targets $5B in loans for serial entrepreneurs
SINGAPORE: OCBC Bank has committed S$5 billion (US$3.9 billion) in financing by 2028 to support 'serial entrepreneurs.' These are founders who run multiple small and early-stage businesses in its main markets: Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Indonesia. The bank's initiative began in Singapore in 2019. It officially launched in Malaysia in July 2025 after a nine-month pilot. OCBC plans to expand the programme to Hong Kong by the end of 2025 and to Indonesia afterwards. This is the first such offering by OCBC. It recognises that traditional SME financing models do not meet the needs of entrepreneurs managing several ventures. Rather than treating each business separately, OCBC considers the entrepreneur's overall history and group strategy. Each entrepreneur works with a dedicated relationship manager and receives help from in-house experts in cash management, corporate advisory, and wealth services. In a media statement, Anna Chang, head of middle market and services at OCBC's global commercial banking division, said, 'Serial entrepreneurs are often overlooked by the market. They face fragmented banking experiences, have to repeat their stories to multiple bankers, and receive limited credit despite strong overall performance.' Following a survey of more than 500 business owners from 2017 to 2018, OCBC discovered significant gaps in banking services for entrepreneurs managing multiple businesses. The survey found that one in three new businesses in Singapore was started by someone who already owned at least one company. Meanwhile, in Malaysia, almost half of OCBC's Malaysian SME clients were also found to be serial entrepreneurs. By the end of 2024, OCBC had provided over S$1.5 billion (US$1.1 billion) in financing to more than 1,800 serial entrepreneurs in Singapore and Malaysia, supporting over 8,000 companies. An additional S$3.5 billion (US$2.7 billion) is set aside to be deployed from 2025 to 2028. OCBC is also developing industry-specific solutions for sectors with high rates of serial entrepreneurship, including healthcare, education, and food and beverage. These solutions include working capital loans, venture funding, sustainable finance, M&A advisory, and cross-border expansion services. Chang noted that serial entrepreneurs often perform better in terms of credit than single-venture founders, with 30% lower default rates. 'Cross-portfolio visibility helps us spot early warning signs and reduce risk through communication,' she said. See also 9 local companies rank on Forbes Asia's 'Best Over A Billion' list Entrepreneurs will also be supported by a relationship manager who will help tailor specialists in cash management, corporate advisory, and wealth planning. 'At the heart of this is ambition,' Chang concluded. 'We've redesigned SME banking to empower founders to build, scale, and exit ventures with agility and confidence.'
Straits Times
07-07-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
OCBC raises loan fund size to $5b and covers more territories in boost for serial entrepreneurs
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox (From left) Westpoint Transit director Lionel Lee, OCBC head of middle market and services, global commercial banking Anna Chang, and Unearthed Group founder Adam Piperdy. SINGAPORE – OCBC Bank is topping up its loan pot to $5 billion from $1.5 billion for entrepreneurs who own multiple small, early-stage businesses, and extending its cash line beyond Singapore to Malaysia, Indonesia and Hong Kong. The borrowing scheme for serial entrepreneurs is unique for its creditworthiness assessment of individuals and the collective strength of their companies, rather than the individual businesses they run. The bank also assigns a dedicated manager and provides advisory services to these business owners. OCBC aims t o lend the $5 billion to this segment by 2028. This includes the $1.5 billion that has been disbursed to more than 1,800 business founders in Singapore and Malaysia since the bank pioneered the plan in 2019. In a media briefing on July 7, OCBC executives said despite the uncertain trade environment, the bank expects business owners to forge ahead. The bank started offering the coverage to Malaysian entrepreneurs in early July after a nine-month pilot, and plans to do so in Hong Kong later in 2025, to be followed by Indonesia. Ms Anna Chang, the bank's head of middle market and services, global commercial banking, said that based on the bank's portfolio, firms led by serial entrepreneurs are 30 per cent less likely to default than those run by single-venture owners. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Eligible S'poreans to get up to $850 in GSTV cash, up to $450 in MediSave top-ups in August Singapore Four golf courses to close by 2035, leaving Singapore with 12 courses Singapore Singapore's second mufti Shaikh Syed Isa Semait dies at age 87 Singapore Fewer marriages in Singapore in 2024; greater marital stability for recent unions Singapore Shell heist: Second mastermind gets more than 25 years' jail for siphoning $100m of fuel Asia 72-year-old man on diving trip to Pulau Tioman in Malaysia found dead on the beach Singapore Jail for ex-auxiliary police officer who loaded one bullet and accidentally discharged revolver Singapore $1.46b nickel scam: Ng Yu Zhi opts to remain silent after judge calls for his defence Only companies in which the so-called 'key man' has a majority stake are taken into assessment for financing, she said. Loan guarantees are borne only by the entity taking the loan, and tenures could be four to 18 years, depending on whether the loans are collateralised. One in three new businesses incorporated in Singapore belongs to an entrepreneur with at least one business, according to OCBC. In Malaysia, serial entrepreneurs account for almost half of the bank's small business clientele. OCBC is also offering sector-specific solutions for sectors such as healthcare, education and food and beverage, which tend to draw serial entrepreneurs. Mr Adam Piperdy, who has nine businesses in the events sector under the Unearthed Group, said: 'I've been doing business for about 15 years, and we always repeat the same story to the same, or multiple, relationship managers just to get financing... There was a lot of time spent going to each entity to approve transactions and all that.' With the bank's support, Mr Piperdy's group, which runs the Orchard Road Christmas Festival, has grown more than 30 per cent in revenues each year in the last two years, and seen a ninefold increase from 2020 to 2024 in the number of events it manages yearly. He plans to expand to Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia in the next 12 months. For Westpoint Transit's director, Mr Lionel Lee, efforts to upgrade the bus fleet in his family's five companies across the logistics and transport sectors had hit snags previously. The second-generation leader in the business said: 'A lot of times we were told, 'You guys haven't taken any loan in many decades, how are you going to be able to finance it? Show us some records.' It was frustrating.' Then he met the OCBC team, which showed more interest in his business plans. 'That provided the foundation financially for us to acquire 30 buses last year and, at the same time, allowed us to expand our hiring of drivers,' he said. Autonomous vehicles are now on his radar. OCBC's head of global commercial banking, Mr Linus Goh, said having a more complete view of a customer's risk exposure and business portfolio allows the bank to offer better support. It also deepens trust. He said: 'When you have the whole relationship together, I think the key man tends to be very upfront.'
