Singaporean banking apps have seen a continued increase in downloads with 3.6m downloads in 2023, a 37% increase from 2022. Incumbents recorded the majority of banking app installations from 2017-2023 with a combined 12.9m downloads, a 88% share of total downloads. Neobanks saw a combined 1.8m downloads over the same period, a 12% share of total downloads. Incumbents dominated in 2023 with 2.7m downloads, a 76% share of downloads whilst Neobanks saw 876k, a 24% share of downloads. This does show that digital and neo banks are closing the gap.
GXS Bank, a Singaporean based digital bank, had the largest growth in 2023 at 488%, with total downloads reaching 324k by the end of 2023, although this is skewed as they launched their app in August 2022. GXS, which holds a banking licence from MAS, launched in 2022 with a mission to make banking better and more accessible to consumers and businesses in Singapore. One way in which the Bank is doing so is by disrupting market practices which do not serve its customers. For example, GXS customers can enjoy interest savings with the GXS FlexiLoan because interest on the loan is calculated daily, based on the outstanding balance at the end of the previous day. Ms Jenn Ong, Head of Retail at GXS, said, “Personal loans in Singapore often come with legacy administrative fees which erode the financial boost that loans should provide consumers. We believe that a loan can be a powerful tool in your financial toolkit if used wisely. As a bank, our customers count on us to make sure that every cent counts for them.”
The Development Bank of Singapore (DBS), had the most app downloads from 2017-2023, reaching a combined 3.24m. In 2023 DBS had 561k downloads in 2023, a 21% increase from 2022. DBS is the biggest bank in Singapore by customers through the acquisition of POSBank in 2002.
