Not So Mighty 'Mighty Savers'

Two weeks ago, I went to the OCBC bank in Choa Chu Kang, after much persuasion from my two girls to open an account called the Mighty Savers Programme. Basically it is just another bank account for kids, except that they will provide a card with 20 boxes for a sticker to pasted on each.

A sticker is to be given to the child for each dollar he or she saves. Upon collecting 20 stickers, the kids can deposit the card and money and in return, they get a small encouragement gift. Well this was the strategy to get kids to save and also to penetrate the kids' market as a kids' bank, probably. They even had commercials that run back to back daily during the December school holidays. That was probably how the girls got to know this. Mandy and the Mighty Savers' were their heros.

So back to two weeks ago. I went to the bank. With birth certificates and 2 happy anxious girls. We had to wait for the queue number to appear before we could go to the rightful desk. So wait, wait, wait. Not very patient, my girls. Well when it was our turn, I brought out my girls Birth Certs and subsequently, my Identification card since I'll be the parent to be signing the account on their behalf.

To my disappointment, the lady asked me for the kids' passports. WHAT? No I did not hear wrong. She wanted to see the kids' passport. Gosh, I didn't know that. When I called up the bank they said Birth Certs, and the parent's IC. So what happens now. Well this lady said because it stated on the cert that the kids are not citizens of Sg at time of birth. Well, yes because they are PRs, second generation, like their parents. So she said so sorry, she cannot help me. I looked at the kids, gosh they were so disappointed. I was kinda disappointed too, cos I really think that it is absurd to ask for their passports. I've open other bank accounts for the kids at other bank too but none asked for Passports. I thought you only needed passports if you are a foreigner with some working permits. But they have Singapore Birth Certificates. And Sg is a paperless society so I reckon my particulars and my kids' particulars are all there on the screen!!!

So today, 2 weeks away, I decided to go to another branch in the west, Jurong East and brought the passports along this time. The registration by this gentleman was smooth and he didn't asked me for the passports. To be doubly sure, I asked him, "Don't you need the passports?" He said "No, its only birth certs for kids, besides the parent is already a Singapore PR and it is stated on my screen" I asked him to make sure, he checked again and again, and I got the Mighty Savers' Accounts. I was sooo GLAD! Jurong East OCBC, You're the BEST! I should have just gone to this branch instead!



Following this episode, read up what happened a week later.