RHB’s new romcom mini-series brings banking to life through travel tales

RHB Banking Group is taking a fresh approach to brand storytelling with "Ms Adventures", a romantic comedy (romcom) mini-series aimed at travel-savvy audiences. Launching 4 December on TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts, the nine-episode series blends humour, adventure, and a touch of romance in a vertical-first format designed for mobile viewing.

“Banking is one of the few things in life that reliably appears at every dramatic moment,” Abdul Sani Abdul Murad, group chief marketing officer at RHB told A+M exclusively. “So instead of preaching features, we wanted to tell a story people might actually want to watch. A romcom is perfect because misadventures are universal, and so is the feeling of being saved by something small you forgot you even packed. It’s entertainment first, branding second, and logic somewhere after that.”

Don't miss: RHB turns Instagram comments into a live light show for Deepavali

The series follows Sara, a spirited traveller whose journey takes unexpected detours, echoing the real-life chaos of modern travel. RHB’s multi-currency debit card features in the story, but not as a conventional product placement. “The twist is that Sara, in her chaotic dash to the airport, leaves it behind,” Abdul Sani explained. “The fun comes from watching how the journey unfolds when the thing meant to save her isn’t with her. That’s where the link to RHB becomes more interesting. It’s not a lecture, it’s a reminder that the right tool only matters when you bring it along.”

RHB says the move into storytelling was prompted by the crowded attention economy. “Feeds are crowded and people scroll faster than ever. Facts get skimmed while stories get remembered, especially when travel is top of mind heading into the holiday season,” he added. “If someone pauses long enough to watch a scene, laugh at a moment or recognise themselves in Sara, then the story has already done more for the brand than a list of features ever could.”

The series was conceptualised and produced by Red Communications, bringing comedy, craft and chaos to the narrative, with media strategy led by IPG Mediabrands’ Azure unit (now under Omnicom). Shot entirely in vertical format, "Ms Adventures" is optimised for short-form platforms, designed to feel like a friend’s holiday updates—just with better lighting and fewer apologies.

Episodes will roll out starting tomorrow (4 December), with the final episode leaving audiences with an open-ended question about Sara’s next move, reinforcing the series’ theme that even the smallest details matter when you’re far from home.

Back in October, RHB also took another fresh approach for a marketing stunt, challenging the long and slow queues at money changers, by turning that frustration into inspiration. In a cheeky guerrilla stunt, the bank deployed several individuals wearing unbranded blue T-shirts that read “Scan to skip the queue,” complete with a QR code on the back.

The activation, which took place at one of Kuala Lumpur’s busiest malls during the lunch-hour rush, was designed to pique curiosity. Shoppers scanning the code were directed to RHB’s new multi-currency debit card page, where they learned they could buy foreign currency instantly via the RHB mobile banking app. No queues, no cash-counting required.

Related articles: 
RHB Bank skips the queue with cheeky guerrilla stunt
RHB concludes media pitch
RHB Singapore banks new television partnership with Mediacorp