DBS to customers: 'Bank less'

DBS has rolled out a SG$30 million (US$22.4 million) brand repositioning, introducing 'Live more, bank less' and retiring 'Living, breathing Asia' across its six markets. The campaign has started in Singapore and will roll out across the other markets within the next two months.

Speaking during a livestream about the launch yesterday, DBS CEO Piyush Gupta said the bank has spent the past three to four years rethinking its nature and how it is going to compete with non-traditional players such as Alibaba and Tencent.

The new brand promise "reflects the belief that in the digital era, [DBS] needs to deliver banking that is so simple, seamless and invisible, that customers have more time to spend on the people or things they care about", according to a release.

The repositioning campaign, which coincides with the bank’s 50th anniversary, includes a total of 10 video vignettes as well as print assets, which depict banking being made easier for all segments of society. As the bank puts it in one ad, it’s 'Live more, ouch, ouch, ouch, less'. Another short video, 'Play more', shows a group of senior ladies using the bank's mobile app during a mahjong game.

DBS has introduced a number of products and features including DBS iWealth which allows customers in Hong Kong and Singapore to transact and trade on mobile. Meanwhile, customers in India are able to open an account with the brand's Digibank without any paperwork or signatures.

Gupta said the bank would continue to experiment. It will also continue its banking miniseries, Sparks, which aims to dispel banking’s stiff reputation. “The next two episodes will have Sachin Tendulkar [Indian cricket star]," said Gupta. "No doubt it’s going to get 100 million views in India.”

Speaking of sports stars, Singaporean swimmer and Olympic Gold winner Joseph Schooling will not be a central figure in the campaign, despite being signed to a three-year deal for community outreach programmes, the bank confirmed during the livestream.

Tribal Worldwide worked on the campaign’s print ads, while Moviola was involved in the production of the video vignettes with the bank’s in-house team.