Bank of Singapore Says Its AI Agents Halve Account Opening Time as Dubai Hub Grows

Moo spoke at a fireside chat on the first day of the Dubai FinTech Summit at Madinat Jumeirah, according to the state news agency WAM. "We developed our own AI agents to do KYC for clients," he said. The agents gather client data, write reports and speed up due diligence, which is usually one of the slowest parts of taking on wealthy clients.

The remarks matter for Dubai's ambitions in private banking. The private banking arm of Singapore's OCBC Group counts Dubai as one of its three strategic hubs, with Hong Kong and Singapore. Its branch in the Dubai International Financial Centre serves clients in the Middle East and Europe and is still adding bankers, according to WAM.

Moo rejected the idea that the two cities are fighting over the same money. "There is no cannibalization. There's enough wealth around the world to really be managed in different locations," he said. He gave several reasons for Dubai's appeal: its position between Asia and Europe, the technology and investment businesses that have grown up around DIFC, and growth prospects across the GCC and the Indian subcontinent. He said both cities have room to grow over the next decade as clients spread out where their assets are held and managed.

The bank has seen more interest from Chinese conglomerates and investors in Dubai. It has taken investors and senior financial institution executives from China on visits to the emirate, and its DIFC branch has dedicated Chinese coverage for this group, WAM reported.

Moo said money is also moving the other way. Middle Eastern clients are looking to Asia for custody and investments, with particular interest in Southeast Asian markets. "I really feel like that's where the next alliances will be built," he said of the corridor between Asia and the Middle East. He described Asia as "a source of capital and a source of investment". The bank's international clients have grown over the past five years, he said, although most of its clients are still Asian.

Family offices are investing in a more institutional way, Moo said, and asking more of their private banks. "We have to offer them everything from public to private opportunities," he said. He said clients want private-market exposure to AI and the infrastructure behind it, including data centres, cooling and energy.