DBS 01 (May 08 - Jul 10)

[winston]

KohBoonHwee is leaving DBS in pretty good shape.

Hmmm ... CEO or Chairman is running DBS ?

[LenaHuat]

During Stanely's illness and subsequent death, KBH was running a tight ship which earned him a pretty load of bad press and ill will. He was 'hard to get' and this ruffled feathers - if you recall this pretty nasty article by a publisher from a deemed "Asian banker" . This article was reproduced wholesale in this forum and it ruffled me too

[millionairemind]

May 7, 2010
DBS Q1 profit up 23%
DBS, South-east Asia's biggest bank, said it was seeing good momentum for its business after posting a 23 per cent rise in quarterly profit on higher fees and trading income, and smaller bad-debt charges.

The result, which was slightly above forecasts, came two days after rival OCBC reported bumper profits and showed how an economic rebound could help turn around earnings this year for Singapore banks.

Investors hope chief executive Piyush Gupta, who took over in November, will get DBS, which makes most of its money from Singapore and Hong Kong, to boost earnings from the rest of Asia. But analysts do not see a quick fix for the bank which faces regulatory bottlenecks that may prevent it from expanding aggressively in China, India and Malaysia. DBS also needs an acquisition strategy to increase its footprint in Indonesia, analysts say.

DBS said on Friday its Jan-March net profit was $532 million versus $433 million a year ago, its best quarterly profit since the third quarter of 2009. Analysts had predicted a net profit of $523 million, according to the average of five forecasts in a Reuters survey.

DBS said its net interest income fell 1 per cent to $1.066 billion as margins dropped, though loans grew 3 per cent, slower than OCBC's 12 per cent growth. Fee and commission income jumped 8, while bad-debt charges fell 14 per cent to $355 million.

Net trading income jumped 27 per cent, as DBS, the biggest player in Singapore's money market, took advantage of a pickup in volumes for currencies and bonds. -- REUTERS

[kennynah]

good lah... my savings account is safe then...thumbs up

[millionairemind]

May 7, 2010, 1.02 pm (Singapore time)

DBS says much of Q1 bad debt linked to Mideast

SINGAPORE - DBS Group, Southeast Asia's biggest bank, said on Friday that a substantial portion of its first quarter bad debt was linked to the Middle East.

The bank had exposure to Dubai World.

The comments by DBS CFO Chng Sok Hui came after the bank earlier on Friday posted a 23 per cent rise in quarterly profit that disappointed investors after bumper profits at its domestic rivals. -- REUTERS

[LenaHuat]

Dubai World reportedly said that it would stop paying interest from May until creditors agreed to the re-structuring of its debt .
That's Covey's : Begin from the end in mind

[kennynah]

wah.... this is what i call a THREAT !!

[winston]

DBS GROUP - Peter Seah, DBS Group's recently appointed chairman, told the Business Times news paper that while DBS will continue lending money to domestic players in non-Asian markets, it will focus more on supporting ventures owned by existing Asian customers.

Source: Reuters

[winston]

Not vested.

DBS reviewing Mideast, Europe, US operations-report

SINGAPORE, June 18 (Reuters) - DBS Group , Southeast Asia's largest lender by assets, is rethinking the way it runs its wholesale banking business in the Middle East, Europe and North America, the Business Times reported on Friday.

Peter Seah, the bank's recently appointed chairman, told the paper that while DBS will continue lending money to domestic players in non-Asian markets, it will focus more on supporting ventures owned by existing Asian customers.

DBS will also concentrate on non-Asian firms looking to expand their operations in the region, he added.

DBS has already revamped some of its businesses, including Islamic Bank of Asia, which will now focus on investment banking and private equity rather than corporate loans.

The tiny Islamic bank suffered a $77.1 million loss last year due to bad loans in the Middle East. "We ran into some problems in our presence in the Middle East... We need to pause now and review what we need to do," Seah told the newspaper.

Source: Reuters

[millionairemind]

June 24, 2010, 6.34 pm (Singapore time)

Update: DBS issues US$10 bln debt programme

By SIOW LI SEN

DBS Bank Ltd has set up a US$10 billion debt issuance programme to issue senior debt securities.

The net proceeds from the issue is for general business purposes such as supporting the growth of its loan book.

As senior debt, the proceeds cannot be used for acquisitions.

Earlier this month, United Overseas Bank set up a S$5 billion euro medium-term note programme which analysts said was to give the bank more flexibility.

They also expect other banks to follow suit.

Under the programme, UOB said it may issue senior or subordinated debt securities in Singapore dollars or other currencies in various amounts, when needed.

Subordinated debt can be counted as part of the bank's capital and may be used for acquisitions, leading some analysts to speculate that UOB's move is to give the bank flexibility .

'The programme gives UOB the flexibility to draw down the funds when it likes,' said Pauline Lee, a banking analyst at Kim Eng Securities. 'It is in line with management's strategy to be more aggressive in lending. And I don't rule out the possibility of mergers and acquisitions.'