S$30,000 love scam & S$10,000 debt: How these OCBC staff prevent customers from falling victim to scams and help with challenging bank issues

All my life, I had never given much thought about interactions with customer-facing staff.

After all, aren’t these things usually transactional?

But speaking to Gina Toh and Bryon Loke, a service officer and relationship manager from OCBC, changed my perspective.

If I could paint a picture of their work life for you, you’d likely encounter them when you walk into your frequented bank branch.

Finding fulfilment in helping customers

Toh has been working at OCBC for eight years, first as a bank teller before moving into the service officer role about four years ago.

She described herself as a people person. So at her old job where she regularly faced computers, she said:

“I didn’t find much fulfilment.”

That’s why she chose to do customer service, specifically in a bank.

“Why a bank?” I asked.

She recalled the times her parents would come home after settling their problems at a bank branch when she was younger.

“I always found they were happy when they went to the bank, even though there may be a long waiting time.”

The only thing her parents said were the compliments directed at the staff.

“Wah she helped me with…”

“He was so nice… “

This was when she realised how being at the frontlines of banking could change the perspective of a customer’s experience.

As an adult, she is doing the same for her customers.

Toh recounted an incident involving a lady customer, who had just lost her husband and was unaware that he had outstanding credit card fees.

As time passed, the late fees piled up and reached around S$10,000.

“The customer was depressed after her husband passed on, and did not have time to settle the financial issues,” Toh said.

Empathetic to the customer’s situation, Toh was determined to help her resolve the issue.

She soon found that the bulk of this amount was from an insurance policy her late husband purchased.

After checking with the insurance company, she worked with different business units within OCBC to expedite a waiver and this significantly reduced the amount owed.

“The lady later shared with me that she felt like her husband actually sent someone there to help her during this difficult time.”, she said.

While most customers are grateful for Toh’s help, there are some difficult ones too.

“Most of the time, when customers are angry, they go into the branch and don't care. Just go in and shout, and they'll just bang the table and stuff.”

Ultimately, the customers aren’t angry at the staff but at an issue, Toh reminds herself in situations like these that it is nothing personal.

“It's not about us, because it's our first time meeting. So there's no reason why they're shouting and screaming at us.”

“Luckily you’re a people-person”, I commented, as it is quite hard for most to have to face unpleasant and angry customers.

Toh responded that the job has helped her be even better with people, pointing out that you don’t need to have that trait to be in a customer service job.

Toh has been the recipient of eleven customer service awards over the past eight years.

Toh receiving a customer service award in 2023. Image via Gina Toh.

“I think this award already made me feel that those times when customers were screaming and all that, all my time and effort, (were) actually worth it.”

But what keeps her going is that she feels she can do more in this service industry.

“I don’t just want to stop here, to help one customer,” she added.

Facing different challenges

Loke, a relationship manager, on the other hand, enjoys “facing different challenges every day”.

“I prefer meeting different people and tackling new issues, instead of repeating the same tasks every day.”

Before moving into his current role, Loke was a personal financial consultant. The interactions with customers at the branch leave him with volumes of personal stories.

“That’s why it’s interesting,” he adds.

Serving the customer’s needs was top priority.

One day while at work, he noticed a customer in a beanie, looking sickly, walking into the branch.

He didn’t think much about it until she said she wanted to make a fixed deposit placement.

Questioning further, he later found that she had a terminal illness and only had a few months left to live.

“She told me she had worked all her life. She doesn’t splurge and saves her money. But now she has cancer.”

Loke could have helped the customer to process the fixed deposit placement and suggested other financial products that could generate returns.

However, he knew it would be more meaningful for her to use the money for other experiences in her last days.

“I just want her to enjoy her life,” he added.

Another incident that stood out to Loke was an elderly lady trapped in a love scam.

The woman came in for help to transfer S$30,000 to her “boyfriend” she met on Facebook messenger.

“She was very persistent that he was her boyfriend. And she needed to transfer money so that he could come over.”

She kept on insisting on the transaction while Loke did his best to convince her by bringing her out for coffee and showing the latest love scams online.

“Is this the hardest part of your job?” I asked.

“No,” Loke said.

Having to counsel customers is not the toughest aspect.

In fact, it can be challenging to get customers to open up about their financial situation, because it is a personal matter.

“You have to understand their lifestyle and their needs before finding a suitable product that is able to help them.”

Navigating customer-fronting role

At first, I thought Toh and Loke’s roles simply needed someone talkative and people-oriented.

From my interaction with them, they both had that factor – friendly and witty, even persuasive.

But beyond that, they had a drive that kept them going.

Helping customers is just a bonus they experience every day.

This article by OCBC reminded this writer to be more calm and composed on her next visit to the bank.

Top photos courtesy of OCBC.