Top News

Shares of Singapore’s largest bank by asset traded at SGD61.70 (US$48.26) apiece Thursday afternoon, just a notch below the historic level of SGD62 achieved on May 19.

Tan sold her shares at SGD60.12 on May 15, fetching around SGD6 million (US$4.7 million). The shares have risen 9.4% year-to-date and almost 40% year-on-year after the company released its first-quarter earnings report.

DBS reported SGD$5.9 billion in revenue, roughly in line with analyst forecasts, while statutory earnings per share of SGD1.05 beat analysts’ expectations by 5%, according to a note by Australia-based portfolio management consultancy Simply Wall St.

Taking into account the latest results, the consensus forecast from the consultancy’s 13 analysts covering DBS is for revenue of SGD23.4 billion in 2026, up 5.2% from 2025. The analysts also maintained their share price target at SGD59.48, indicating that they believe the business is performing well and broadly in line with expectations.

The most optimistic analyst covering has set a price target of SGD68.30 per share, while the most cautious values the stock at SGD50.00. “Although there are differing views on the stock, the range is not wide enough to suggest that the outlook is too uncertain to forecast.”

But DBS’s revenue growth is expected to slow considerably, with revenue through the end of this year projected to grow at an annualized rate of 7%. This compares with a historical growth rate of 12% over the past five years. By comparison, other companies in the same industry with analyst coverage are expected to grow revenue by 8.4% a year.

Other analysts are confident about the future of the company. Securities broker CGS International Securities Singapore earlier this month upgraded its forecast on DBS, citing improved forecasts for the bank. “We turn more constructive on DBS (…) due to its resilient net interest income and stronger growth in its wealth management fees,” said CGSI analysts Tay Wee Kuang and Lim Siew Khee.

Australia-based financial services company Macquarie upgraded DBS to “neutral” from “underperform”, and lifted its target price by 8% to SGD52.38.

Macquarie analyst Jayden Vantarakis noted that DBS’ guidance for 2026 has turned “slightly more upbeat.” He noted that DBS now thinks its earnings “have a good shot at coming in flat year on year for 2026.”

Elevated geopolitical tensions could benefit DBS’ wealth business, said Singapore lender OCBC’s head of equity research Carmen Lee. “With the flight to safety and the strong Singapore dollar, we expect some inflow of funds into Singapore. This should be positive for DBS’ wealth business,” she said, as reported by The Business Times.

This, alongside market expectations of no rate cuts by the U.S. Federal Reserve this year, should mitigate an “otherwise challenging situation for banks”, she added.

Company executives remain upbeat about DBS’ prospects. During the earnings call, chief financial officer Chng Sok Hui told investors the bank has a chance of keeping full-year earnings close to the record levels reached in 2025, despite volatility in global interest rate expectations.

In her first full year as CEO, Tan raised the bank’s 2026 deposit growth forecast to the high-single-digit range, pointing to substantial regional capital inflows into Singapore’s offshore wealth ecosystem.

Tan now holds 1.3 million DBS shares, representing 0.048% of the bank’s total ordinary shares, according to The Edge Singapore.

The bank’s first female CEO succeeded Piyush Gupta in March last year after he led the bank for 15 years. She received SGD9.6 million in remuneration last year, covering her tenure as CEO as well as the period when she served as deputy CEO earlier in the year.

She previously held senior roles at Morgan Stanley and Citigroup before joining DBS in 2010, where she advanced through positions in wealth management, institutional banking, and other sectors.