“We are really encouraged by the strong response from the schools community to the POSB National School Savings Campaign. Within just five months of the launch, we have received positive feedback from parents, teachers and even students themselves. As we have designed the format of the campaign to be fun and interactive, students are motivated to collect the savings stamps and complete the stamp cards, essentially participating in the physical act of saving money,” said Jeremy Soo, Head of DBS Singapore Consumer Banking Group.
“The POSB National School Savings Campaign is very effective in enhancing students’ social and emotional competencies like self-management and self-awareness. In self-management, students manage their pocket money effectively through budgeting and set aside some for savings. In self-awareness, they understand that their spending and saving habits have an impact on their lifestyles. After participating in this campaign, students understand the importance of savings and they also learn that savings is more important than a want,” said Ho Wei Heong, Level Head of Character and Citizenship Education at Wellington Primary School.
Joshua Lee, father of student Caleb Lee, said, “The programme provided the perfect platform for me to bond, educate and inculcate good saving habits for my son. His desire to collect stamps stems from filling up the card quickly so that he can ‘scan’ for bonus stamps in the Smiley Town game. I noticed he has started to display enthusiasm and effort in thinking before spending – something which has never happened before.”
A student participating in this campaign purchases about three stamps a week, on average, saving SGD 1.50 in the process. The average balance for POSBkids accounts has also increased by 13% from a year ago, reflecting the effectiveness of this campaign in promoting the savings culture among children.
Over the last few months, POSB has done a series of school outreach activities led by the bank’s mascot, Smiley the Squirrel, to inculcate the values of savings and thrift among students. To further engage the digitally savvy generation of today, POSB also launched “Smiley Town”, a mobile gaming app which provides students with money saving tips and helps students track their savings.
To further reach out to the community, POSB is also working with Sengkang West Division to launch a financial literacy programme for children by leveraging on the National School Savings Campaign.
POSB has released its latest stamp designs – the “sports” series – to commemorate the 28th SEA Games happening in Singapore from 5-16 June. (Refer to attachments for stamp designs)
To participate in the POSB National School Savings Campaign, students can collect stamp cards from participating school bookstores, POSB/DBS branches, or any SingPost outlet. They can purchase stamps (at SGD 0.50 each) from participating school bookstores or SingPost outlets. Once the cards are filled with 20 stamps, they can be deposited into any POSB/DBS Quick Cheque Deposit location, and SGD 10 will be subsequently credited into the student’s POSBkids account. To provide greater incentive for students to save, POSB will offer a bonus SGD 1 for every SGD 10 saved by each student per month via this campaign. The campaign will conclude at the end of November this year.
For more information on the POSB National School Savings Campaign, please visit: http://www.posb.com.sg/savewithsmiley
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About DBSDBS - Living, Breathing AsiaDBS is a leading financial services group in Asia, with over 280 branches across 18 markets. Headquartered and listed in Singapore, DBS has a growing presence in the three key Asian axes of growth: Greater China, Southeast Asia and South Asia. The bank's capital position, as well as "AA-" and "Aa1" credit ratings, is among the highest in Asia-Pacific. DBS has been recognised for its leadership in the region, having been named “Asia’s Best Bank” by The Banker, a member of the Financial Times group, and “Best Bank in Asia-Pacific” by Global Finance. The bank has also been named “Safest Bank in Asia” by Global Finance for six consecutive years from 2009 to 2014.DBS provides a full range of services in consumer, SME and corporate banking activities across Asia. As a bank born and bred in Asia, DBS understands the intricacies of doing business in the region’s most dynamic markets. These market insights and regional connectivity have helped to drive the bank’s growth as it sets out to be the Asian bank of choice. DBS is committed to building lasting relationships with customers, and positively impacting communities through supporting social enterprises, as it banks the Asian way. It has also established a SGD 50 million foundation to strengthen its corporate social responsibility efforts in Singapore and across Asia.With its extensive network of operations in Asia and emphasis on engaging and empowering its staff, DBS presents exciting career opportunities. The bank acknowledges the passion, commitment and can-do spirit in all of our 21,000 staff, representing over 40 nationalities. For more information, please visit www.dbs.com.About POSBA part of the DBS Group, POSB is the largest local bank in Singapore with 4 million customers. Having served generations of Singaporeans for the past 138 years, it is known as the "People's Bank", and prides itself on being "neighbours first, bankers second".
With a good understanding of Singaporeans through the years, POSB offers products and services that are relevant to the savings, borrowing, investment and insurance needs of all Singaporeans. With over 50 branches conveniently located islandwide, and over 1,000 ATMs and Cash Acceptance Machines across the island, POSB's distribution network is the largest in Singapore.
POSB acknowledges the passion, commitment and can-do spirit in each of its staff. For more information, please visit www.posb.com.sg
