Singapore’s DBS Bank will offer a plug & play food delivery service for its small business customers to help them generate precious cash flow as the Corona Virus and subsequent financial system impacts hit retail and consumer spending. 

With Singapore residents being encouraged to change their eating habits from dining out to dining in, DBS is working with two homegrown technology startups, Oddle and FirstCom, to offer F&B businesses the ability to set up an online food ordering site in just three business days.

Joyce Tee, Group Head of SME Banking, DBS, said that through conversations with F&B clients and industry groups to understand their immediate challenges, she realised that the industry is grappling with fewer dine-in patrons due to stricter safe distancing measures implemented by the authorities as a result of the Covid-19 situation. 

“The DBS F&B digital relief package elevates our support for the F&B community by creating an ecosystem of government partners and homegrown technology startups to help affected businesses overcome cashflow challenges by creating new income streams fast. The digital solutions in our package can be implemented with minimal lead time, allowing F&B businesses to tap into a rich online consumer base in just days rather than months. More than ever, SME banking today is more than just transactional relationships. It is about staying the course even when times are bad. In unprecedented times like these, DBS is actively rallying the industry to ensure the viability of our customers and their employees’ livelihoods,” Tee added

DBS’ F&B digital relief package is expected to be available by the end of March 2020, and the bank will be proactively engaging its F&B clients on how they can access these solutions. More details can be found at https://www.dbs.com.sg/sme/covid-19-relief-measures/fb-digital-relief-package