Awards for Excellence 2020
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Supported by helpful regulators, many Asian lenders adapted well to the pandemic. Hong Leong Bank (HLB) was no exception. The Kuala Lumpur-based lender donated to local NGOs and delivered food parcels to the needy during Ramadan.
Customers benefited from its ability to look beyond the fringes of the envelope.
A tie-up with social commerce platform Avana helped hard-up SMEs to target new customers in lockdown, while a deal with digital platform weEat helped food and beverage firms to put their menus online.
Other alliances enabled customers to hook up to and manage inventory, logistics and invoicing on the cloud.
On March 27, Malaysia’s central bank expanded its Special Relief Facility (SRF) and introduced a new RM300 million ($70 million) Micro Enterprise Facility. Both were designed by Bank Negara Malaysia to help SMEs and micro firms tackle short-term cash-flow problems.
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Domenic Fuda |
Hong Leong Bank’s leadership under chief executive and group managing director Domenic Fuda showed clarity of service and purpose in explaining the central bank’s various policies to its clientele.
As the bank noted, “one of the main pain points” for SMEs was a kind of dazed confusion, as small business owners struggled to make sense of all the new and expanded government policies.
To ensure none of its customers was left behind, HLB introduced a new FAQ section in five formats, including text and email and on Facebook.
Each was rolled out in three languages – English, Mandarin and Malay – while a hotline and a web page were created, allowing customers to call or write in to opt in or out of various short-term financial aid plans. This included, after March 25, the right to defer all loan or financing repayments for up to six months.
Hong Leong Bank also stripped away much of the red tape by allowing customers to tap into the SRF by downloading application forms, applying their digital signature and uploading them direct to the bank via email, SMS or WhatsApp. This led to more content customers and had the additional benefit of cutting footfall at the bank’s physical branches.
