Piyush Gupta, chief executive of DBS, Singapore's biggest bank by assets, says: "Singapore, in a way, is still going through a crisis of identity. Does it really seek to embrace being a global city or not?" He adds: "For London and New York, the answer has been unequivocal over the past several decades. In Singapore's case the jury is out because being a global city comes with attendant pluses and minuses. If you chose not to want to be a global city, that brings into question the economic and growth model that you seek to aspire to."