Maybank Singapore CEO Alvin Lee looks to tap the silver economy and cross-border flows to grow his business

Singapore is racing towards super-aged status. By 2030, one in four citizens will be 65 or older, up from just one in ten two decades ago. Demographic decline can be a burden on economies, as a shrinking working-age population is forced to support a growing elderly population. But for some businesses, the “silver economy”—products and services catering to an aging population—can be an opportunity. “The silver economy is a muscle we need to invest in,” says Alvin Lee, the Singapore CEO of Malaysian bank Maybank, adding that the bank’s Singapore clientele already has more “silver generation users” than the industry average. Maybank has steadily built up its wealth services catering to Singapore’s silver generation. In 2019, it launched the Passion Plus program, which includes banking products with “preferential saving rates” to help users build their retirement savings, and lifestyle perks like massages, cheaper supplements and discounted doctor visits. Etiqa, the bank’s insurance wing, also offers a specialized accident plan catered for those aged between 40 and 75, which offers a higher reimbursement limit for medical expenses from accidents. “Hopefully, within the short term, these products will benefit the bank financially, and also allow us to serve our customers well,” he says. Building new muscles Lee first joined Maybank in 2013 as the chief investment officer of its private banking unit, following stints at other financial institutions like JPMorgan, Citibank, and Barclays. He established Maybank’s wealth management wing in Singapore in 2016. Maybank entered the wealth management space later than its peers, but it’s now a core pillar of the Malaysian bank’s business. In a February press release, Maybank said wealth management continued to be a “key growth engine” in 2025, with total financial assets increasing 5% to 562.3 billion Malaysian ringgit ($176.4 billion). In 2024, Lee was appointed as Maybank’s Singapore CEO, replacing John Lee who retir