Kelly said she was upset about losing her money but was thankful that most of her savings were safe because of OCBC’s money lock.
She had put more than $110,000 in money lock in January and June, preventing the scammers from stealing it.
OCBC, DBS Bank and UOB rolled out the feature in November 2023. Maybank, Standard Chartered, Citibank and HSBC followed in June.
As at July 31, more than 114,000 people have used the money lock function, with over $9 billion of savings set aside.
OCBC said that as at September, more than 70,000 OCBC accounts with more than $8 billion have been locked.
Mr Beaver Chua, head of anti-fraud at OCBC’s group financial crime compliance, said the bank traced Kelly’s money to a digital bank account. Future transactions to it have been blocked.
Mr Chua said: “We continue to encourage all customers to adopt money lock to protect themselves from scams.”
More than $2.7 billion here has been lost to scams since 2019, with victims losing a record of over $385.6 million in the first half of 2024.
Kelly said: “I think banks should make all their customers use money lock. It may be a bit troublesome for some because they have to physically go to an ATM or bank, but at least their money will be safe.”
She added that while the incident has made her more wary of shopping online, it has not dampened her love for fish head curry.
“I really like fish head curry. I still suggest going to eat it whenever there’s a celebration,” she said.
Inspector Kalai Mahran, a senior investigation officer with the police’s Anti-Scam Command who handled Kelly’s case, said scammers frequently change their tactics.
He said: “We urge everyone to stay informed about the latest scam tactics, to be sceptical of unsolicited contacts and to report any suspicious activities promptly.”