It appears that MAS is taking a serious view about the computer glitch at DBS Bank. I consider that the attention is misplaced. Sure, someone made a serious mistake, but it was not intended. Let them learn their lesson.
I prefer MAS to put its attention on other matters that are important to consumers, such as the excessive charges for banking services for writing a cheque wrongly or for having a bounced cheque. The charges of $25 or $50 for these unintended mistakes are grossly excessive. MAS should investigate the real cost to the bank and ensure that the bank does not make a profit from these charges.
Unlike the computer glitch which was unintentional (i.e. caused by a routine repair job), the excessive charges by the banks are delibrate and unconscionable.
If the bank is allowed to make a handsome profit on these charges, you cnn be sure that they will be creative in making life difficult for their customers, so that they can be caught with these penalties.
Tan Kin Lian
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Dual currency investment
Read this article. A dual currency investment carries high risk but does not give a commensurate return. It should be avoided.
MAS and DBS computer glitch
From what I read, MAS is going to hold DBS Bank accountable for the computer glitch that cause failure of banking services for 7 hours on 7 July 2010.
After operating its massive online banking services for many decades, this is the first time that DBS has encountered a serious failure of this nature and it is caused by a "routine repair job". It is not the second, third or repeated occasions.
Several thousand customers were inconvenienced, but no money or lives were lost. We should expect this type of unfortunate, embarrassing event to occur, and should not overact to them. It is better to learn from the experience.
Singapore has a culture of "no tolerance for failure". Is this going to be another example of over-reacting to a mistake, to edge into the psyche of Singaporeans?
If we are not careful, another Singaporean culture will manifest - finger pointing. DBS officers will be pointing fingers to IBM and in turn IBM will be pointing fingers to their subcontractors or employees. A scrape-goat will eventually be found.
The likely response to this type of problem will be another layer of security and complexity and expensive consultants to advise on their implementation. Eventually, bank charges will be increased to cover the higher cost.
I hope that common sense will prevail over these dominant Singapore cultures, and that a low cost solution be found. There is no need to have a fully integrated system that can be brought down by a "routine repair job". It is better to design computer systems that can operate independently to handle the volumnous small transactions and have simple recovery procedures that can be activated easily, when the unexpected happens.
Tan Kin Lian
After operating its massive online banking services for many decades, this is the first time that DBS has encountered a serious failure of this nature and it is caused by a "routine repair job". It is not the second, third or repeated occasions.
Several thousand customers were inconvenienced, but no money or lives were lost. We should expect this type of unfortunate, embarrassing event to occur, and should not overact to them. It is better to learn from the experience.
Singapore has a culture of "no tolerance for failure". Is this going to be another example of over-reacting to a mistake, to edge into the psyche of Singaporeans?
If we are not careful, another Singaporean culture will manifest - finger pointing. DBS officers will be pointing fingers to IBM and in turn IBM will be pointing fingers to their subcontractors or employees. A scrape-goat will eventually be found.
The likely response to this type of problem will be another layer of security and complexity and expensive consultants to advise on their implementation. Eventually, bank charges will be increased to cover the higher cost.
I hope that common sense will prevail over these dominant Singapore cultures, and that a low cost solution be found. There is no need to have a fully integrated system that can be brought down by a "routine repair job". It is better to design computer systems that can operate independently to handle the volumnous small transactions and have simple recovery procedures that can be activated easily, when the unexpected happens.
Tan Kin Lian
Taking full responsibility
The CEO of DBS Bank said that his bank will "take full responsibility" for the 7 hour failure of ATM and other banking services. What do these words "take full responsibility" mean? Is the bank giving monetary compensation to their customers who have been inconvenienced by the failure of the services? Will they be making a big donation to charity or paying a hefty fine?
In Japan, "takes full responsibility" means a full public apology followed by the immediate resignation of the president of the company. In older days, the responsible person is expected to undergo harakiri, a painful process of suicide by cutting off the stomach.
In Singapore, it is easy to utter these hollow words and there will be no consequence. I do not wish to have anybody punished seriously for an unfortunate mistake, but I wish to see credibility and integrity - and that words that have been uttered should coincide with appropriate action.
Tan Kin Lian
In Japan, "takes full responsibility" means a full public apology followed by the immediate resignation of the president of the company. In older days, the responsible person is expected to undergo harakiri, a painful process of suicide by cutting off the stomach.
In Singapore, it is easy to utter these hollow words and there will be no consequence. I do not wish to have anybody punished seriously for an unfortunate mistake, but I wish to see credibility and integrity - and that words that have been uttered should coincide with appropriate action.
Tan Kin Lian
Retirement age and pensions
Read this article.
My view
An old age pension is suitable for Singapore. The cost is modest and should be borne by the working population. It is some form of insurance scheme and represents the recognition that a country can give to its elderly citizens. Most countries have recognized this philosophy. Singapore has to adapt.
My view
An old age pension is suitable for Singapore. The cost is modest and should be borne by the working population. It is some form of insurance scheme and represents the recognition that a country can give to its elderly citizens. Most countries have recognized this philosophy. Singapore has to adapt.
Android phone
Recently, I bought the Motorola Milestone, which runs on Google Android operating system. It is the first time that I am using a smart phone. I find the applications to be top class, and available for free.
I am able to access Google Mail and Calendar from the smart phone. It also uses the Contacts in the server. I find this to be very useful as I do not need to maintain the Contacts or Appointments separately in my smart phone.
I also like the Google Maps, which gets my current location using GPS. Now, I check the Map to find ou the best route to take to my destination. There is a choice of travelling by car, public transport or walking. A few days ago, I had to visit a place that I am not familiar with. After parking the car, I used the Google Map to check my current location and the direction to walk to my destination. It was very useful.
Please share your views on the applications that you use regularly on your smart phone.
Tan Kin Lian
I am able to access Google Mail and Calendar from the smart phone. It also uses the Contacts in the server. I find this to be very useful as I do not need to maintain the Contacts or Appointments separately in my smart phone.
I also like the Google Maps, which gets my current location using GPS. Now, I check the Map to find ou the best route to take to my destination. There is a choice of travelling by car, public transport or walking. A few days ago, I had to visit a place that I am not familiar with. After parking the car, I used the Google Map to check my current location and the direction to walk to my destination. It was very useful.
Please share your views on the applications that you use regularly on your smart phone.
Tan Kin Lian
Fee for a mistake in the cheque
Dear Mr. Tan
I agree with your views about the outdated manner of writing cheques. I made a small correction to the amount in figures on my cheque but forget to initial the correction. The bank returned the cheque to me and charge a fee of $25. I called the bank and made a complaint. They finally agreed to waive this fee. Why should the fee be so high, just to return the cheque?
REPLY
The bank imposed a high fee for many types of small mistakes. This helps them to make billion of dollars of profit. It is outrageous for the fee to be so high. MAS should step in and put a stop to these excessive overcharging.
Some time ago, my bank sent me a letter that the fee for a late payment of a credit card is $50. I cancelled the card immediately. Consumers should not accept this type of unconscionable charges.
I agree with your views about the outdated manner of writing cheques. I made a small correction to the amount in figures on my cheque but forget to initial the correction. The bank returned the cheque to me and charge a fee of $25. I called the bank and made a complaint. They finally agreed to waive this fee. Why should the fee be so high, just to return the cheque?
REPLY
The bank imposed a high fee for many types of small mistakes. This helps them to make billion of dollars of profit. It is outrageous for the fee to be so high. MAS should step in and put a stop to these excessive overcharging.
Some time ago, my bank sent me a letter that the fee for a late payment of a credit card is $50. I cancelled the card immediately. Consumers should not accept this type of unconscionable charges.
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