Lianhe Zaobao, 27 Aug
Voices, Pg 24
We refer to the letter “How can I trust PayNow transfers” (22 Aug) by Mr Ong Yiat Wah.
All PayNow transfers are not only quick and convenient but also safe and reliable. In the case of Mr Ong, all his monies were successfully credited to his CPF accounts.
What happened was as follows. On 14 August, Mr Ong visited our Bishan Service Centre. He successfully made a voluntary housing refund using PayNow under the guidance of our staff. Three days later, Mr Ong wanted to make a second refund and he did so successfully by himself. On 18 August, Mr Ong decided to make a third refund. This time, however, he did not use his smartphone to scan the PayNow QR code like he did in the previous two refunds. Instead, he separately used his bank website to make a generic bank transfer to CPF Board. This generic transfer did not specify the transaction reference number. As a result, the transfer was credited into CPF Board’s general account. That is why his refund was processed and credited to his CPF account only at 5pm on the next working day, 19 August.
We described the above in some detail so that readers understand why PayNow is in fact reliable and safe. We have also reached out to Mr Ong to explain that because his third refund was not done by scanning the PayNow QR code, it was processed differently from the first two.
Peh Er Yan (Ms)
Group Director (Housing Group)
Central Provident Fund Board