A corporate bank account in Singapore is an account held in the name of a company or other business entity and operated by authorised signatories under a mandate from its board. Before opening one, a bank must understand the entity itself, the people who run it and the natural persons who ultimately own or control it, as MAS Notice 626 requires. How straightforward this is depends mainly on three facts: where the company is incorporated, who its directors and shareholders are, and whether it has a visible business connected to Singapore.
What a bank must establish about a company
Notice 626 (version dated 28 March 2024) sets out what a bank must know about a legal person. The rules are the same at every bank; the forms and supporting documents vary.
| What the bank must establish | Notice 626 (2024 version) | How it usually shows up in an application |
|---|---|---|
| Name, registration number, registered address and principal place of business, date and place of incorporation | 6.6 | ACRA business profile or foreign registry extract |
| Legal form, constitution and powers | 6.7, 6.9 | Constitution, certificate of incorporation |
| Connected parties: directors and persons with executive authority | 6.8 | Director list with ID numbers |
| People acting on behalf of the company and their authority | 6.10–6.11 | Board resolution, mandate, signatory IDs and specimen signatures |
| Beneficial owners: those who ultimately own, then control, then hold executive authority | 6.13–6.14 | Ownership chart down to individuals |
| Nature of business and ownership and control structure | 6.15 | Business description, group chart |
| Purpose and intended nature of the relationship | 6.18 | Expected transactions, counterparties, countries |
How banks trace beneficial owners, including the 25% example threshold in MAS Guidelines, is explained on the KYC and CDD page.
Company-law building blocks that feed the bank file
Much of what a bank checks is created when the company is set up with ACRA.
| Requirement | What ACRA states (checked October 2026) | Why the bank cares |
|---|---|---|
| Directors | Every company needs at least one director who is ordinarily resident in Singapore and aged 18 or above; qualifying local residents include citizens, PRs and holders of a valid Employment Pass, Personalised Employment Pass or Overseas Networks & Expertise Pass | Directors are connected parties the bank must identify |
| Registration by foreigners | "Foreigners must engage a Corporate Service Provider (CSP) to reserve a name and register a business structure" | The CSP is often the first point of contact for bank introductions |
| Company secretary | Must be appointed within six months of registration | Often signs certified copies of corporate records |
| Auditor | Must be appointed within three months of incorporation unless exempt | Audited accounts later support source-of-wealth checks |
| Nominee directors | Must inform the company of nominee status and provide nominator details | Banks must see who stands behind a nominee |
| Registrable controllers | Persons with more than 25% of shares or voting rights; if none can be identified, a director with executive control and the CEO are treated as controllers | The register is a starting point for the bank's own beneficial-owner work |
| Corporate service providers | The Corporate Service Providers Act 2024 took effect on 9 June 2025; businesses providing the corporate services it lists must register with ACRA (registration deadline 9 December 2025), subject to stated exemptions | Banks may check that the CSP involved is registered |
The RORC and the bank's beneficial-owner assessment are separate exercises: matching ACRA filings help, but banks reach their own view.
Ownership patterns and how they change the process
Ownership is the biggest single factor. Examples below are from bank websites checked in October 2026, not a ranking.
| Ownership pattern | What typically changes | Published examples |
|---|---|---|
| Singapore company wholly owned by citizens or PRs | Instant online opening may be available through Myinfo and ACRA data | DBS: instant opening for companies "fully owned by Singapore citizens or permanent residents", and "no supporting documents are required" if criteria are met; OCBC Business Growth Account: instant opening only for businesses "wholly owned by Singapore citizens or Permanent Residents" |
| Singapore company with foreign individual shareholders or directors | Online application possible at some banks, but with more documents and review | OCBC describes "100% remote and online account opening" for foreign-owned companies; UOB states that companies with foreign directors can apply online but a Singaporean Singpass holder must log in and start the application, and its general eligibility requires at least one owner or director who is a citizen or PR |
| Singapore company with a corporate shareholder | The bank looks through each layer to individuals | Ownership chart to individuals; some digital banks exclude corporate shareholders altogether (digital banks) |
| Company incorporated outside Singapore | Separate products, set-up fees, certified foreign documents | OCBC Business Foreign Account: for "all businesses registered outside of Singapore", one-time set-up fee US$1,200 and S$80 per month for the SGD account (first 2 months waived); UOB: "Account Setup Fee of minimum S$500" for foreign-incorporated companies |
| Holding company, family office or fund vehicle | Source-of-wealth focus, possible private-banking route | See family office and VCC accounts |
Holding structures used to keep a name off ownership records do not reduce what a bank asks for; MAS Guidelines (8-2) list nominee shareholdings as potentially higher risk.
Real activity and a reason for a Singapore account
Banks ask newly incorporated companies about their business because the rules require it. Notice 626 paragraph 8.6(c) says that where a bank cannot establish that a legal person has "ongoing, apparent or visible operation or business activity", an "economic or business purpose for its corporate structure", or "substantive financial activity in its interactions with the bank", it must assess whether the customer presents higher risk. MAS Guidelines (8-2) add unexplained geographic distance and unusually complex structures as potential higher-risk factors.
An AML/CFT Industry Partnership (ACIP) best-practice paper of May 2025 describes a baseline review of the entity's revenue, milestones and seed capital, with management accounts acceptable from new companies and a check on whether an overseas entity "is carrying out business in Singapore". It is industry guidance, not an MAS rule.
Material that banks commonly ask for to understand activity:
- A short description of products or services, customers and suppliers
- Signed or draft contracts, invoices or purchase orders
- A website, office or co-working arrangement, and staff plans
- Expected monthly volumes, currencies and countries of payment
- The source of the share capital and initial deposit
Channels: instant online, remote and relationship-manager routes
Opening channels are bank policies built on top of Notice 626, and fall into three groups:
- Instant or fully digital opening. Usually limited to Singapore-incorporated companies owned by citizens or PRs; DBS states that company details must be "retrievable via government verified sources such as MyInfo or ACRA".
- Online or remote application with review. For foreign-owned Singapore companies at banks that publish such routes, subject to each bank's eligibility rules (UOB's, for example, needs a citizen or PR owner or director). The bank may follow up with questions or a video call.
- Relationship-manager or branch route. Common for overseas companies, layered structures, larger balances and family offices.
Digital banks add a fourth option for small, locally owned businesses, with ownership and director tests described on the digital banks page. The step-by-step sequence is on the process page, and the document pack on the corporate checklist.
Sole proprietorships, partnerships and LLPs
Banks also open accounts for sole proprietorships, partnerships and limited liability partnerships (LLPs) registered with ACRA. For a partnership, Notice 626 treats "any partner or manager" as a connected party; for a sole proprietorship, the owner is controller and, in practice, main signatory.
| Entity | Who the bank identifies | Practical notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sole proprietorship | The owner | Personal and business deposits are combined for SDIC purposes (see business fees and deposit insurance) |
| Partnership or limited partnership | All partners and managers | Partnership agreement may be requested |
| LLP | Partners and managers; beneficial owners | LLP agreement and ACRA profile |
| Private limited company | Directors, signatories, beneficial owners | Constitution, board resolution, ownership chart |
Professionals involved
Several professionals usually play a part, but none can substitute for the bank's own decision.
| Professional | Typical role in the account file | Point to watch |
|---|---|---|
| Registered corporate service provider (CSP) | Handles incorporation for foreign founders, keeps the registers and filings | ACRA requires providers of the listed corporate services to register under the Corporate Service Providers Act 2024, subject to exemptions |
| Company secretary | Certifies corporate records and minutes the board resolution opening the account | Must be appointed within six months of registration (ACRA) |
| Accountant or auditor | Prepares management or audited accounts that support source-of-funds questions | New companies may only have management accounts at first |
| Lawyer | Explains trusts, nominee arrangements or layered holding companies | Banks still look through to the individuals behind the structure |
| Tax adviser in each relevant jurisdiction | Confirms CRS and FATCA entity classification and home-country reporting | Applies to Singapore and to the owners' home jurisdictions, such as Hong Kong or mainland China |
What they supply must match ACRA records and the applicants' own declarations; inconsistent versions prompt follow-up questions.
Outcomes depend on each bank's own assessment, and no adviser can promise approval or a timeline.
Sources and dates
- MAS Notice 626 dated 28 March 2024 (PDF) — Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) · 2024-03-28
- Guidelines to MAS Notice 626 — Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) · 2024-03
- Step 4.3: Choosing company directors and other key officers — Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) · 2026-01-29
- Requirements for local residency (foreigners registering a business) — Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) · 2026-10
- Register of Registrable Controllers — Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) · 2026-03-06
- Step 1: Checking if you must register as a CSP — Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) · 2026-01-29
- Best Practices on Source of Wealth Due Diligence — AML/CFT Industry Partnership (ACIP), published by The Association of Banks in Singapore · 2025-05
- Key Considerations for Business Account Opening — DBS Bank · 2026-10
- Business Growth Account; Business Foreign Account; Account opening for foreign-owned companies — OCBC · 2026-10
- eBusiness Account: For Startups and SMEs — UOB · 2026-10