Yahoo Finance 
Ed Sheeran: Singapore UOB cardholders spent the most for artist's shows outside city
Malaysian UOB cardholders were the highest spenders across Ed Sheeran's shows in Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia.
SINGAPORE — UOB cardholders in Singapore were the highest spenders for pre-sale tickets to Ed Sheeran's upcoming shows in Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, according to the bank on Friday (3 November).
In contrast, Malaysia UOB cardholders spent the most across all four shows, while the artist's Singapore concert is the most preferred destination for non-Singapore cardholders.
UOB, the regional presenting sponsor of Ed Sheeran's Mathematics Tour in Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia, announced in October that its cardmembers across the region were eligible for priority access to tickets for shows across all four countries.
Pre-sale tickets for all four shows were sold out, with the concert in Thailand being the last one to sell out as of Thursday. In Singapore, pre-sale tickets were sold out in under 100 minutes when the sale window opened on 27 October.
Also read: Ed Sheeran to rock Singapore National Stadium on 16 February 2024
Also read: Taylor Swift fans caused 45% surge in UOB card applications across Southeast Asia
Also read: Taylor Swift fans reportedly caused UOB card application surge
UOB cardholders' privileged access to Taylor Swift shows
The campaign follows a similar one carried out by the bank in June when it announced that UOB cardholders would be given privileged access to tickets for Taylor Swift's The Eras Tour concerts in Singapore.
Fans scrambling to gain early access to Taylor Swift concert tickets saw approved UOB credit card applications surging by over 45 per cent post-announcement, while debit cards saw a 50 per cent growth in daily application submissions after the announcement.
In addition, new female cardholders grew by more than 10 per cent, and new cardholders from the 25 to 29-year-old age group grew by more than 20 per cent.
Jacquelyn Tan, UOB's Head of Group Personal Financial Services, said that the bank would be introducing 'entertainment' as a new spending category and will work toward having at least two global partnerships a year. These include live shows, meet and greet sessions and festivals across the five Southeast Asian countries that the bank operates in, namely Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam.
Tan also added that her team will focus on getting partnerships with more global artists for the region and has alluded to partnering with a K-pop act in the near future.
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter.
