The bank, headquartered in Singapore, is leaning into the trend around precious metals.

Trading and holding precious metals online have become easier, OCBC says, as the Singapore-headquartered banking group adds platinum and palladium bullion to its mobile phone app. 

The additions build on OCBC’s existing digital gold and silver capabilities, which have been available to retail customers since October 2021. 

OCBC said that until recently, local banks have had limited access to platinum and palladium for affluent clients. 

The bank said clients can invest in the metals digitally from as little as 0.01 ounces, priced at about S$23 ($17.9) for platinum and S$18 for palladium as of 7 August, it said in a statement yesterday.

While demand for gold tends to be driven by its role as a currency-neutral store of value asset, and by central bank buying for reserves, platinum and palladium derive a significant portion of their demand from industrial applications, OCBC said. 

“By combining fractional investment with a seamless digital experience, we have lowered the precious metals investment barrier to entry for all our customers,” Tan Siew Lee, head of group wealth management at OCBC, said. 

“It is nonetheless important to recognise that platinum and palladium are high-beta metals. Investors who are willing to tolerate higher volatility may find in them a unique way to gain exposure to themes that sit at the intersection of industrial activity, resource scarcity, and the evolving global energy transition.”

Platinum is widely used in automotive manufacturing, hydrogen fuel cell technologies and industrial processes, while palladium plays a critical role in vehicle emissions-control systems. Demand for these metals is therefore closely linked to developments in the automotive, industrial and clean energy sectors. 

OCBC said its research predicts spot prices of platinum and palladium to exceed $2,000 and $1,500 respectively by the first half of 2027, rising from $1,833 and $1,389 as of end-June this year.