Spore banks vying with fintech players for the travel dollar

They are going up against YouTrip, Revolut, Wise and others for piece of growing pie

- Chor Khieng Yuit

The competition to be Singapore travellers' multi-currency wallet of choice is heating up, with local banks vying for a piece of the space closely associated with fintech players such as YouTrip, Revolut and Wise.

The pie is growing as outbound travel in Singapore continues its trajectory of recovery in 2022 and 2023, close to the pre-pandemic peak of 10.7 million departures in 2019, according to data from the Department of Statistics.

In 2023, there were 9.4 million departures, a jump of 82 per cent from 2022. Similarly, 2022's 5.15 million departures were a sixfold increase from 2021.

Associate Professor of Finance at Insead Naveen Gondhi said multi-currency wallets such as YouTrip are increasingly favoured for spending while overseas because they offer users the ability to convert Singapore dollars into various foreign currencies at minimal to zero transaction fees.

He added that their use appeals to younger people especially.

Ms Lynn Ang, 46, went to Japan in April and used the YouTrip card for the first time.

She said she did not have to bring too much cash with her for this trip, unlike past vacations where she exchanged foreign currencies at the money changer.

Ms Ang added that she can see all her transactions on her app, which she checks to ensure that there are no unauthorised transactions, giving her peace of mind.

Retiree Kevin Lim, 58, uses Wise and YouTrip when he is overseas.

He said he is used to Wise and has no reason to switch to the banks' multi-currency offerings.

"Basically, you will need to offer a superior product or service to get customers," he said. It is not enough just to match the fintechs that have made inroads into this space, Mr Lim added.

Mr Zennon Kapron, director of fintech research and consulting firm Kapronasia, said there are quite a few multi-currency travel wallets in the market and the space is starting to get crowded.