OCBC announced it was expanding its wealth offering to include allocated physical gold trading and custody, saying institutional clients of OCBC and high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients of Bank of Singapore could buy, sell and custodise physical gold from 10 June 2026, with holdings kept in a Singapore-based vault.
SERVICE SCOPE AND STRUCTURE
The new service covers large gold bars of about 400 troy ounces (12.4kg) as well as 1kg kilobars, and provides clients with the option to hold allocated bars under custody in Singapore, according to the announcement reported by Fintech News Singapore.
The gold bars will be identifiable by serial numbers and allocated to clients, giving them ownership of specific bars rather than a stake in a pooled reserve. The bars will be held in a vault in Singapore; previously, Bank of Singapore clients transacted in physical gold through a US-based entity. The announcement did not disclose pricing or fee structures.
Bank of Singapore said its clients' holdings of physical gold had grown by more than 40% since the end of 2025, with most of these holdings belonging to ultra-high-net-worth clients.
EXECUTIVE COMMENTS
Kenneth Lai, Head of Global Markets at OCBC, said: "Our Singapore-based physical gold trading and custodian capabilities represent a strategic expansion of our market-making capabilities in precious metals."
Jason Moo, Chief Executive of Bank of Singapore, said: "By leveraging OCBC Group's strengths, we will be able to deliver a secure, trusted and differentiated physical gold offering that addresses our clients' risk concerns."
The announcement did not provide details on insurance arrangements for the stored bullion or whether clients could opt for delivery of physical bars to locations outside Singapore.
The service adds to OCBC's other gold products, including the LionGlobal Singapore Physical Gold ETF, listed on the Singapore Exchange in March 2026, and the OCBC-LionGlobal Physical Gold Fund Token, launched in April 2026 for institutional and corporate accredited investors.
Sources: Fintech News Singapore; The Asset
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