OCBC has launched an AI-powered mobile banking app featuring virtual avatars designed to provide customers with personalised, real-time wealth management advice around the clock.

The bank said its new app, OCBC WoW, is the first AI-native banking app of its kind in Southeast Asia.

The platform features two AI-powered virtual advisors, Wendy and Wayne, which interact with customers through voice or text to provide real-time portfolio analysis, investment insights, and tailored market updates.

Initially launching as an invitation-only beta for selected high-net-worth customers served by OCBC Premier Private Client advisors, the bank said the app aims to strengthen customer engagement through hyper-personalised financial services.

The avatars analyse customers' investment portfolios alongside live market data, OCBC research, and behavioural information to offer personalised recommendations based on individual risk appetite and investment objectives. Customers can also ask questions using natural language and receive portfolio insights, market commentary, and suggested investment opportunities.

The platform is built on four technology layers, combining real-time customer and market data, AI guardrails, AI agents, and customer-facing applications to deliver personalised wealth management in a secure environment.

The first beta release focuses on wealth management, offering real-time market news, portfolio tracking, investment research and tailored investment ideas.

It plans to expand the platform with insurance products, broader banking services, additional avatars and lifestyle rewards. Support for Mandarin, Bahasa Melayu, and Bahasa Indonesia will also be introduced after the initial English-language launch.

Tan Teck Long, group chief executive of OCBC, said the bank was "changing the face of banking" by introducing avatars as a new way to engage with customers.

“The ability to roll out new features in quick succession in a viable manner is made possible because of an AI-native environment,” he added. “Hyper-personalisation goes from being a buzz word to being a reality with intelligence built into the foundation.”

The launch builds on a series of AI initiatives across the bank. Earlier this year, OCBC introduced a generative AI coaching programme for wealth advisers while its private banking arm, Bank of Singapore, deployed an agentic AI tool to automate source-of-wealth checks, reducing report preparation times from around 10 days to one hour.

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