UOB launches Engagement Lab to meet banking needs of Asean's booming digital generation

SINGAPORE (Oct 18): United Overseas Bank (UOB) today launched its pan-regional Engagement Lab (eLab), which enables it to personalise the way it converses and serves its Digital Bank customers.

The UOB eLab is the first dedicated unit set up by a bank in Southeast Asia that focuses on using the latest technology and behavioural insights to deepen customer engagement.

UOB will be setting up eLabs across its network of Asean countries, such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The Digital Bank will be launched in Southeast Asia and will use artificial intelligence to identify individual transaction patterns from its huge volumes of transaction data. This will enable the Digital Bank to better understand the individual banking needs and habits of its customers, allowing it to anticipate their needs and be proactive in helping them achieve better money management.

With the eLab, UOB will use the insights drawn to design, test and trial ways to encourage customers to save and spend more wisely.

The specialist eLab team – from various disciplines, such as data analytics and behavioural and decision sciences – will ensure that the digital conversations with the customers are relevant, familiar and intuitive. The conversations will also be designed to be in the customer’s mother tongue.

Dennis Khoo, head of digital bank and digital banking of UOB says, ““Within our local eLab teams, our people will be testing and learning how best to converse with customers. We are building a glossary specific to each market which takes into consideration cultural, behavioural and language norms. With language being used differently by each generation, and especially on digital devices, this is an exciting challenge to tackle.”

“This is an exciting time for UOB as we roll out the digital bank of the future, one that is built on insights to enrich the customer experience for the digital generation. We are on a quest to find like-minded people to be part of our pioneering team. Together, we will turn ideas into distinctive experiences that matter to our customers,” adds Khoo.