DBS just made a very interesting hire from Grab
Grab has established a reputation for poaching people away from large financial institutions in Singapore over the past few years – especially as it builds up its digital bank – but sometimes talent flows the other way.
Jung Kim is a case in point. Singapore-based Kim was Grab’s lead behavioural scientist between July 2021 and July 2022, but earlier this month he took up a similar position at DBS, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Kim advised senior leaders within Grab Financial Group on the design, communication and product strategy of its fintech products. He also developed a “behavioural model of consumer trust in digital financial services in six Southeast Asian countries”.
Banks in Singapore and globally are hiring more behavioural scientist like Kim to mitigate risk, incentivise financial decisions for customers, and understand the root causes of certain employee behaviour.
Kim is not the only behavioural scientist to have made a move in the local finance sector this year. In April, Kate Miller, who led the conduct and behavioural analysis team at Standard Chartered, joined the APAC conduct and behavioural risk unit within Citi’s institutional clients group, according to her LinkedIn profile.
Like data scientists, who are in even higher demand in Singapore banking, behavioural scientists tend to have a strong post-graduate academic background. Kim has a PhD in marketing from Kellogg School of Management. Prior to Grab, he spent five years at Singapore Management University as an assistant professor of marketing.
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