DBS CEO Piyush Gupta is unsackable

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Biggest Singapore banks' earnings in focus as Ezra woes deepen​

File photo of Singaporean energy-services provider Ezra Holdings' subsea construction vessel Lewek Constellation. PHOTO: EZRA HOLDINGS

FEB 13, 2017

SINGAPORE (BLOOMBERG) - The woes of Singaporean energy-services provider Ezra Holdings are a stark reminder to the city's biggest banks of the threat souring oil and gas loans pose to their earnings.
A writedown flagged by Ezra recently has refocused attention on the debt-repayment problems marine-services firms are facing, fueling concerns that lenders may have to set aside more money to cover loan losses. Fourth-quarter results due this week from DBS Group Holdings and its two biggest rivals may include a 44 per cent surge in combined provisions for the period from a year earlier, according to RHB Capital Bhd.
"At the end of the day, it's the issue of provisioning that will weigh down on profitability," said Leng Seng Choon, an RHB analyst in Singapore.
Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp publishes its earnings on Feb 14, the first of the big banks to do so. DBS, the city's largest lender, reports on Feb 16, followed by United Overseas Bank a day later.
Charges for energy loans have colored the results reported by the banks over the past year, adding to pressure from a weakening domestic economy and slower lending growth. Reduced demand for oil and gas services has led at least four companies into default, the highest profile of which was Swiber Holdings, which sought court protection in July.
In the latest sign of the industry's struggles, Ezra on Feb 3. flagged that it faces a US$170 million writedown on a joint venture, as it negotiates - along with a host of its peers in marine services - for more lenient repayment terms with banks and creditors. The firm and its related companies owe S$1.1 billion to the three banks, CIMB Group Holdings said in a Feb 2 report, citing its own estimates.

None of the banks have revealed publicly their exposures to Ezra or whether they have set aside any funds to cover loans to the company. It's possible they may have already done so because Ezra's financial difficulties are well known, Standard & Poor's analyst Ivan Tan said by phone on Feb 6.

DBS more than doubled its loan provisions in the September quarter from a year earlier, leaving its profit for the period little changed. The bank grew its buffers at a similar pace in the previous quarter to cover its exposure to Swiber.
Representatives from DBS and UOB declined to comment.
For OCBC, stress tests since the third quarter of 2015 allowed the bank to identify customers that could be impacted, enabling it in turn to restructure some loans and make provisions "for the potential further deterioration" in oil and gas, spokeswoman Koh Ching Ching said in an e-mail. She couldn't share details of specific loans, citing banking secrecy restrictions.
To cover potential losses related to Ezra and other energy-services firms, the banks may report combined loan provisions for the December quarter of S$910 million, according to estimates from RHB Capital.
DBS shares climbed about 26 per cent since the release of its third-quarter earnings at the end of October, while OCBC and UOB are up more than 10 per cent. The banks have rallied amid optimism US interest rates will rise, driving borrowing costs and interest income higher, according to a Feb 8 report by Daiwa Capital Markets analyst David Lum.

 

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DBS hit hard by oil and gas woes but is still upbeat​

Q4 profit lowest in two years but huge allowances for non-performing loans unlikely this year, says CEO​

CEO Mr Gupta (above) expects the bottom line this year to grow about 10 per cent. PHOTO: BLOOMBERG

Wong Wei Han

FEB 17, 2017

DBS Group Holdings has reported its lowest quarterly profit in two years as the bruising impact of oil and gas sector-related loans again dogged the bank.
But its shares closed 1.7 per cent higher at $18.54 after the results came out, perhaps an indication investors were reassured that the worst impact of DBS' bad loan provisions has passed.
Net profit slid 9 per cent to $913 million for the fourth quarter ended Dec 31 even as revenue rose 5 per cent to $2.78 billion. The earnings drop was worse than a 6.6 per cent dip forecast in a Reuters poll.
Net interest income fell 2 per cent year on year to $1.82 billion as net interest margin (NIM) shrank from 1.84 per cent a year ago to 1.71 per cent. Non-interest income jumped 19 per cent to $952 million.
The major drag on the bank's performance was higher total allowances, surging 87 per cent to $462 million in the quarter. For the full year, it was $1.43 billion, nearly double the $743 million in 2015.

• AT A GLANCE
  NET PROFIT: $913 million (-9%)
  REVENUE: $2.78 billion (+5%)
  FINAL DIVIDEND: 30 cents per share (unchanged)

DBS' total NPLs stood at $4.42 billion as at Dec 31, with an NPL ratio of 1.4 per cent. This was a marked deterioration from 2015, when NPLs were $2.61 billion by the year end on an NPL ratio of 0.9 per cent.

But chief executive Piyush Gupta believes that the days of forking out huge allowances are behind DBS. "Our provisions last year were close to $1.5 billion, and there's no way we will get to that kind of number (this year)," he told a briefing, adding that the rate of new NPL formation will also slow down this year.
Meanwhile, a 10 per cent year-on-year increase in last year's profit before allowances showed a strong business momentum that will carry on into this year.
"Based on our assumptions on (lower) provisions, we should be able to get roughly 10 per cent bottom-line growth (in 2017)," Mr Gupta estimated. This will exclude the one-time costs to integrate the newly acquired ANZ assets.
Key growth drivers include wealth management, where income recorded compound annual growth of 21 per cent to reach a high of $1.68 billion last year. Retail customer income, from sources like loans and cards, also hit a record high of $2.6 billion last year.
The "out of the ball park" showing resulted from efforts to digitalise the business and grow market share, with mortgages' share now at about 29 per cent, Mr Gupta said.
NIM is also expected to improve to an average of 1.8 per cent this year on the back of United States rate hikes. An increase of 0.01 percentage point in local rates would translate to around $6 million of revenue for DBS.
Fourth-quarter earnings per share was $1.40, down from $1.57 a year ago. Net book value was $16.87 at the end of the year, up from $15.82 a year earlier. A final dividend of 30 cents a share was proposed, unchanged from last year.

 

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DBS Q4 profit falls 9% to two-year low as bad debt charges surge 87%​

Singapore's biggest bank DBS Group Holdings reported a 9 per cent per cent fall in net profit for its fourth quarter. PHOTO: BLOOMBERG

Wong Wei Han

FEB 17, 2017

SINGAPORE - DBS Group Holdings, Singapore's biggest bank, reported its lowest quarterly profit in two years as provisions for soured loans almost doubled.
Net profit dropped 9 per cent to S$913 million for the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2016, compared to S$1.0 billion a year earlier, even as revenue gained 5 per cent to S$2.78 billion.
DBS, Southeast Asia's largest lender, was expected to show a 6.6 per cent profit decline to S$936 million, according to analysts polled by Reuters, or S$1.014 billion according to those polled by Bloomberg.
DBS' earnings were eroded by total allowances - set aside by banks to cover for potentially soured loans - which surged 87 per cent to S$462 million, compared with S$247 million in the same period last year.
Its non-performing loan (NPL) ratio hit 1.4 per cent in the fourth quarter, much higher than the 0.9 per cent a year ago.

For the full year, total allowances also shot up 93 per cent, from S$743 million in 2015 to S$1.43 billion in 2016. As a result, full year net profit was down 5 per cent to S$4.24 billion.
DBS is the second of Singapore's Big Three banks to report earnings this week. OCBC posted on Tuesday an 18 per cent drop in fourth quarter earnings to S$789 million as bad-loan provisions surged 57 per cent to S$305 million. CEO Samuel Tsien signaled more pain to come from the stressed oil and gas sector.

Charges for energy loans have added to pressure on banks from a weakening domestic economy and slower lending growth. Reduced demand for oil and gas services has led at least four companies into default, the highest profile of which was Swiber Holdings, which sought court protection in July. In the latest sign of the industry's struggles, Ezra Holdings on Feb 3 flagged that it faces a US$170 million writedown on a joint venture.
DBS has been under the spotlight for its exposure to the oil and gas services sector, particularly after Swiber's implosion caught DBS off guard in the second quarter last year.
In an update to its loan portfolio on Thursday, the bank revealed that its total exposure to sectors including oil and gas support services stood at around S$7 billion at the end of last year.
Within that amount, S$1.8 billion was linked to state-owned or government linked shipyards. But the remaining S$5.5 billion showed more stress, with three names moved under the category of non-performing assets in the fourth quarter.
DBS believes that new NPA formation and provision charges for loans will be lower in 2017.
Meanwhile, DBS' fourth quarter net interest income was down 2 per cent year on year to S$1.82 billion, after net interest margin tightened from 1.84 per cent a year ago to 1.71 per cent and offset the 6 per cent loans growth.
Non-interest income however grew 19 per cent to S$952 million in the same period, on the back of a 6 per cent increase in net fee income to S$515 million.
The board proposed a final dividend of 30 cents, unchanged from a year ago.

 

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Outlook for oil and gas sector remains challenging​

A car is being filled with fuel as a man holds a nozzle at a Pemex petrol station in Mexico City, Mexico, on Feb 3, 2017. PHOTO: REUTERS

Wong Wei Han

FEB 17, 2017

The oil and gas sector is again the villain of the piece, as more bad loans from the ailing industry turn up on local banks' portfolios.
The bottom line at DBS Group Holdings took a hit yesterday mainly from higher allowances made for loan exposure to firms in the sector.
While DBS expects to fork out less in allowances this year, the services side will remain "stretched", said DBS chief Piyush Gupta.
"On the exploration side, new investments are still not happening... It seems to me oil prices must stay stable at around US$60 for longer, or go up sharply, before we see more investments.
"In the production support segment, it's more resilient... but the real challenge is that contracts are being renegotiated down", leading to lower pricings and tight margins, he said.
His observations echoed a similarly bearish statement by OCBC chief Samuel Tsien, who earlier this week warned that the sector would see more "volatility, uncertainty and distress" over the next six months.

At DBS, total exposure to support services firms in the sector was about $7 billion at the end of last year, Mr Gupta said in a portfolio update.

Of that sum, $1.8 billion was exposed to big state-owned or government-linked shipyards.
Another $2.6 billion related to five big firms, one of which was brought into the non-performing category in the third quarter, followed by another in the fourth quarter. Non-performing assets in this area totalled about $800 million.
DBS reportedly has more than $600 million in exposure to Ezra Holdings, which could now be on the brink of liquidation.
The remaining $2.9 billion was exposed to 90 smaller companies. Half of this part of the portfolio has shown weakness, and three new names were considered non-performing in the fourth quarter, Mr Gupta said.
As a result, newly recognised non-performing assets totalled $779 million in the fourth quarter. But this was lower than the $1.06 billion recorded in the third quarter, and the slowdown will continue into this year, said Mr Gupta.

Wong Wei Han

 

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Ex-DBS Vickers trader Dennis Tey gets 16 weeks' jail for spoofing Singapore stock market​

Ex-DBS Vickers trader Dennis Tey Thean Yang pleaded guilty earlier this month to eight of the 23 charges he faced related to his attempt to artificially move prices through fraudulent securities orders. ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG

Grace Leong
Senior Business Correspondent

MAR 22, 2017

SINGAPORE - Ex-DBS Vickers trader Dennis Tey Thean Yang was sentenced to 16 weeks in prison on Wednesday (March 22) for spoofing the securities market in the first case brought jointly by the Monetary Authority of Singapore and white-collar crime police.
Tey was granted bail of S$80,000 by District Judge Jasvender Kaur pending an appeal against his sentence.
Tey, 33, pleaded guilty earlier this month to eight of the 23 charges he faced related to his attempt to artificially move prices through fraudulent securities orders. A broker at DBS Vickers Securities (Singapore) when the offences were committed in late 2012 and 2013, he was also charged with misusing other people's trading accounts without consent.
He could have been jailed for up to seven years and fined up to S$250,000 for each charge, or both.
Spoofing refers to the practice of price manipulation by entering and cancelling large buy or sell orders in the market to give a false impression of market conditions.

• Background Story​

• What is spoofing?​

  In financial markets, spoofing" is an illegal bluffing tactic traders use to manipulate prices of stocks or other products by entering and quickly canceling large buy or sell orders.
  For example, a trader with a position in a stock places an anonymous buy order for a large number of shares through an exchange or trading platform and then cancels it seconds later. The price of the stock will immediately jump, giving the impression of high demand, which draws others into buying the stock, allowing the manipulator to sell at a higher price.
  In the case of ex-DBS Vickers trader Dennis Tey, he sought to manipulate prices of so-called contracts for differences (CFDs), where investors can profit from the price fluctuations of underlying assets without actually owning them.
  After purchasing the CFDs, he would make fake orders in the underlying securities which he would then delete.

According to court papers, Tey sought to manipulate prices of so-called contracts for differences (CFDs), where investors can profit from the price fluctuations of underlying assets without actually owning them.
After purchasing the CFDs, he would make fake orders in the underlying securities which he would then delete.

To carry out his scheme, Tey used three securities and 2 CFD accounts opened in the names of his parents and clients. He engaged in trading on 50 days within a period of 2 months from Oct 24, 2012, to Jan 8, 2013.
He entered 465 orders through the securities accounts and 325 trades through the CFD accounts to make a total profit of S$30,239.
Tey, a Malaysian, who left DBS Vickers in March 2014, was arrested in May 2015 and charged in July last year.
His case is the first pursued jointly by MAS and the police's Commercial Affairs Department since they banded together in March 2015 to probe market misconduct as part of Singapore's efforts to step up policing of its financial industry.

 

[k1976]

DBS' CEO Piyush Gupta is unsackable even with so many mishaps.
Why? Because he makes so much money for Temasek.

A History Of DBS Glitches​

Singapore Airlines' ang moh VP of Public Affairs Rick Clements was heard live on CNN 31st Oct 2000, the night of the Taipei Boeing 747 crash which claimed 81 lives, telling the world, "There are no fatalities". Speaking on the meltdown of DBS' banking systems which triggered an island-wide breakdown of over 1,000 DBS and POSB automated teller machines (ATMs), chief executive Piyush Gupta said, "Actually we have very good safeguards. We have multiple redundancies built into our systems". Either these Foreign Talents are lying through their teeth, or they are clueless about the organisation that hired them. David Gledhill, DBS' head of Group Technology and Operations, even boasted, "...this is the first time a problem of this nature has occurred." Once again, white man speak with forked tongue. Straits Times has listed the ocurrences of "a problem of this nature" in today's paper:

September 2000: All branch computers and 900 DBS/POSB ATMs and Nets services went on the blink for 1 1/2 hours;

February 2001: All DBS ATMs, Nets services and Internet banking were knocked out at lunchtime for 45 minutes;

September 2009: Computers at DBS branches went bonkers, preventing customers from withdrawing more than $2,000 or updating passbook;

October 2009: DBS Internet banking services were kaput for 3 whole hours.

The IT failures disrupted and inconvenienced businesses and the public. It could have been worse. Under the watch of Randolph Sullivan, Chief Executive Officer of DBS Bank (Hong Kong), 83 customer safe deposit boxes at its Mei Foo branch were removed, sent to a scrapyard and crushed in October 2004, due to "a combination of human error, inadequate project oversight and the lack of formalised procedures for safe deposit box removal".

He ish the 栋根柱

 

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News analysis​

The (bad loan) woods are dark and deep for DBS​

Andy Mukherjee

Bad loans rose from the previous quarter to 1.5 per cent, DBS said in its June earnings report. The non-performing loans ratio shot up by one full percentage point in three months on its South and South-east Asia portfolio. PHOTO: BLOOMBERG

AUG 5, 2017

For DBS Group Holdings, South-east Asia's largest bank, the woods of non-performing assets are not at all lovely. They are just dark and deep.
Bad loans rose slightly from the previous quarter to 1.5 per cent, the bank said in its June earnings report yesterday.
The details behind that number, though, are bleak.
For one thing, the non-performing loans ratio shot up by one full percentage point in just three months to 4.6 per cent on its South and South-east Asia portfolio, a reflection perhaps of DBS' soured loan troubles in India.
Also, but for a near-tripling of write-offs in the first half, the $4.83 billion in non-performing assets would be considerably higher than a year earlier.
Low oil prices will probably keep credit costs elevated on loans to Singapore's troubled offshore and marine industry, CEO Piyush Gupta said.
It is hard to see how things can improve in a hurry at DBS: Singapore's property market may be bottoming out, but a strong recovery is not on the horizon.

Bad loans rose from the previous quarter to 1.5 per cent, DBS said in its June earnings report. The non-performing loans ratio shot up by one full percentage point in three months on its South and South-east Asia portfolio. PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
The push into private banking - the bank bought Australia and New Zealand Banking Group's retail and wealth management franchise in some Asian markets last October - is paying off.
Trading and equity underwriting remain weak spots, however.
Singapore's short-term interest rates, a benchmark for loan pricing, are failing to keep pace with the London Interbank Offered Rate, hurting profitability. The net interest margin was an anaemic 1.74 per cent in the June quarter, a 13-basis-point decline from a year earlier.
Fintech is the big hope. As the Singapore central bank relaxes rules on lenders owning non-financial businesses, DBS might be able to deploy as much as US$3 billion (S$4.1 billion), or 10 per cent of equity, at the intersection of e-commerce and payments to ward off a growing threat from the Chinese tech trinity of Baidu, Alibaba Group Holding and Tencent Holdings.
Investors who have pushed the Singapore lender's shares to an 18-year high should be a trifle disappointed by this year's 10.6 per cent return on equity.
That is double that of Standard Chartered, the other big bank to be roiled by a blow-up in Asian emerging markets.
Still, at 1.24 times, DBS' price-to-book ratio is slightly lower than that of OCBC Bank, the No. 2 Singapore lender by assets.
In the short run, Mr Gupta can retain investors' trust by boosting the annual dividend payout ratio from 36 per cent.
Beyond palliatives though, he needs to chalk up a few percentage points on the return-on-equity odometer before he can sleep - or at least hang up his boots.

• This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its owners.

 

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DBS chief sees pay jump 23% to $10.3m in 2017​

DBS Group Holdings chief executive Piyush Gupta believes a return on equity of 13 per cent is "readily achievable".


MAR 29, 2018

DBS Group Holdings chief executive Piyush Gupta reaped a 23 per cent increase in pay to $10.3 million last year, according to the bank's annual report yesterday.
It marks quite a turnaround for him.
In 2016 he took home $8.4 million - down 23 per cent from 2015 after South-east Asia's biggest bank saw its profit slip because of higher charges for bad debts from its oil and gas loans.
Mr Gupta's best year was 2015, when he took home $10.9 million.
DBS posted a record $11.9 billion in income last year, while net profit increased 4 per cent to $4.39 billion, also a record.
Mr Gupta told shareholders in the report that a return on equity (ROE) of 13 per cent is a doable target after levels of 9.7 last year and 10.1 per cent in 2016.
DBS' ROE is typically lower than that of its smaller peers. OCBC Bank recorded 11.2 per cent last year, up from 10 per cent in 2016. United Overseas Bank (UOB) was 10.2 per cent, unchanged from 2016.

UOB's annual report, which was also out yesterday, noted that CEO Wee Ee Cheong reaped an 11 per cent pay rise to $9.4 million last year. Mr Wee and his family own about 18 per cent of UOB.
ROE numbers are a key focus of Mr Gupta, who said DBS has been around 11 per cent since 2010, similar to the preceding decade.
He sees improvement coming from three factors - higher interest rates, reduction in capital requirement and lower costs stemming from digitalisation.

"Normalising for allowances, our 2017 ROE would also have been at that level. However, the underlying returns of our business have been rising since 2010."
Wealth management income has quadrupled during that period and now accounts for 18 per cent of income, while cash management income crossed $1 billion last year from almost nothing, Mr Gupta said.
"Both are low-capital-usage and high-returns businesses. The proportion of capital-intensive trading income has halved to one-tenth of group income," he added.
"These improvements have been masked by the low interest rate environment and a build-up of our capital, both of which are now being reversed."

Interest rates have been low over the past decade, he said.
Three-month Singapore-dollar interbank rates, the benchmark for pricing domestic loans, have been hovering at around 1 per cent.
"With reflation in the global economy well under way, the general view is that interest rates around the world are on a cyclical upturn," Mr Gupta said.
"Given our balance sheet structure, a 1 percentage point increase in domestic interest rates roughly translates into a 1 percentage point improvement in ROE."
With the Basel rules released in December, DBS finally has clarity on capital requirements, he added. "The capital we have been building up because of the uncertainty can now be returned."
DBS announced a special dividend of 50 cents a share as the initial step to recalibrate its Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio closer to its long-term target of 13 per cent compared with the 14 per cent it has been operating on, he said.
It also raised the annual payout to $1.20 per share.
"The reduction in CET1 will be another driver for improving ROE," Mr Gupta noted, adding that the improvement to the cost-income ratio that digitalisation brings will be another.
Digitalisation lets DBS increase market share at lower marginal costs in developed markets and scale profitably into the granular SME and mass consumer segments in emerging markets.
A 5 percentage point improvement in the cost-income ratio translates into a 1 percentage point lift in ROE, he said.
"We believe an ROE of 13 per cent is readily achievable."
Mr Gupta also noted that the digital revolution is fundamentally redefining banking: "The explosion of big data means that... a huge part of the battle for the customer will be fought along data lines."

 

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DBS investors grill board over service, return on equity at AGM​

Designed with a "cafe and branch" concept, DBS' new lifestyle space at Plaza Singapura has an open layout. Customers walk in through a cafe where Bettr Barista, a social enterprise supported by DBS Foundation, operates. PHOTO: DBS


APR 26, 2018, 5:00 AM SGT

DBS shareholders are a tough lot, grilling its board yesterday over service issues and return on equity despite record earnings last year and a bumper dividend payout.
Chief executive Piyush Gupta began by telling around 1,000 shareholders at the annual general meeting that he had been asked what would be a good price to sell the stock and his answer was: As CEO, I will tell you never to sell the bank.
DBS shares have risen 18 per cent this year to $29.79.
The bank posted record profit of $4.39 billion last year and rewarded shareholders with a hefty dividend of 93 cents, up 55 per cent, plus a special 50-cent dividend.
Mr Gupta said its branch revamp included opening a 24-hour new lifestyle space at Plaza Singapura featuring an open layout.
Customers walk in through a cafe where Bettr Barista, a social enterprise supported by DBS Foundation, operates. The branch has tables and chairs where young people can hang out. Mr Gupta said he was there at 9.30pm recently and was happy to see schoolchildren studying.
Not all investors were happy, though, with one saying DBS needs to be more careful with its charity donations, claiming some organisations could be "fake".

Another complained that the bank had reduced his credit card limit despite him being a 30-year customer, and was unhappy that he had to send documents by mail although he lives close to a branch.
One shareholder mentioned the frequent changes in relationship managers.She was also unhappy with the perceived unfriendliness of counter staff. She recalled that previous counter staff were more friendly and that they were Singaporeans.
Chairman Peter Seah said most counter staff are locals and that the bank does have some turnover issues, as does the industry.

Other shareholders asked about DBS' return on equity and compared it with that of its local rival, United Overseas Bank (UOB), as well as the much higher returns of United States and Australian banks.
DBS posted return on equity of 9.7 per cent, while UOB registered 10.2 per cent.
Mr Gupta has said 13 per cent is a doable target.
He noted that US banks have higher numbers because they enjoy bigger net interest margins of over 3 per cent, while banks in Singapore and Asia are half of that at about 1.7 to 1.8 per cent.
He added that while net interest margin is a big driver of returns, the higher capital requirement of Asian and Singapore banks is another factor.
Other questions included threats from fintech giants such as Alibaba, Tencent and Google, and blockchain technology.
Mr Gupta said Alibaba and Tencent are challenging in their home market, but when they come to South-east Asia, "we're quite strong in our own home market".
In money transfer, for example, DBS can do it in three seconds across 11 markets, he noted.
Banks also have their strengths in areas such as liquidity management and dealing with market and credit risks, he said.
One customer asked about DBS' expansion plans in India and worried about the difficulties of doing business there.
Mr Gupta said he was well aware of the complexity of operating in India, adding that since he grew up there and can speak the language, it might give some advantage.
DBS needs, in the long term, to have two major markets outside its home base of Singapore, he added.
Besides India, DBS is also investing more in China and Indonesia.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Man who posted graphic of ripped Singapore flag on Facebook no longer working for DBS Bank​

In a Facebook post, DBS said that Mr Avijit Das Patnaik was "no longer with the bank" as of Aug 24. PHOTO: ST FILE

Derek Wong

AUG 28, 2018


SINGAPORE - The man who posted a graphic of a ripped Singapore flag on Facebook earlier this month is no longer working for his employer, DBS Bank.
The bank announced this in a Facebook post on Tuesday (Aug 28).
It said that Mr Avijit Das Patnaik was counselled for the controversial post, which showed a T-shirt with a graphic of a Singapore flag being torn, revealing an Indian flag underneath.
"DBS strongly disapproves of such actions by our employees," the bank said in the post. "At the same time, it is fair and right that all employees are given the benefit of due process."
The bank added that after the incident, a disciplinary committee was convened and, as of Aug 24, Mr Patnaik was "no longer with the bank".
When asked what role Mr Patnaik had at the bank and whether the bank had fired him, DBS said it had nothing more to add.
The image was believed to have first surfaced on Aug 14, a day before India's Independence Day, when Mr Patnaik shared it on the Singapore Indians and Expats Facebook page.

He posted it alongside a caption in Hindi that said, "Phir bhi dil hai…", which roughly translates to "Still my heart is…" and alludes to a popular Hindi song that talks about always feeling love for the motherland, India.
But he told The Straits Times that he did not design the image. He had first seen it posted on various individual accounts on Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp.

Many netizens who saw the post found it offensive, with some complaining that the image was disrespectful to Singapore, as it showed the Singapore flag being ripped to shreds.
The image was later taken down.
After the incident, when The Straits Times contacted Mr Patnaik, who is a Singapore permanent resident, he apologised and said he did not mean to cause offence.
The Singapore Arms and Flag and National Anthem Act states that no person shall treat the flag with disrespect. The penalty is a maximum fine of $1,000.
The police are investigating the incident.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Man who posted image of ripped Singapore flag no longer with DBS​

Disciplinary panel was called and employee counselled, says bank​

In a Facebook post, DBS said that Mr Avijit Das Patnaik was "no longer with the bank" as of Aug 24. PHOTO: ST FILE

Ankita Varma

AUG 29, 2018

A DBS employee who posted a picture on Facebook showing the Singapore flag being ripped apart to reveal India's flag underneath is no longer with the bank.
The image, which is believed to have first surfaced on Aug 14, one day ahead of India's Independence Day, was shared widely online after it was posted on the Singapore Indians and Expats page on Facebook by Singapore permanent resident Avijit Das Patnaik.
The page has more than 11,000 members.
DBS, in a Facebook post yesterday, said it strongly disapproved of Mr Patnaik's actions. Disclosing that he was counselled, the bank said he was given the benefit of due process.
"Since the incident, a disciplinary committee has been convened and as of 24 August, he is no longer with the bank," DBS said on Facebook.
The bank did not respond to queries on whether Mr Patnaik resigned or if he was dismissed. DBS also did not say what job Mr Patnaik had at the bank.
As of 9pm yesterday, DBS' post had 344 likes, 137 comments and 218 shares on Facebook, with the overall sentiment positive towards the bank's decision.


Whether or not you designed the image is irrelevant. You should not be sharing something that so obviously defaces a national flag... I support their decision to part ways with him.
MS MAY TSE, a housewife, who was among those who supported the bank's move.
DON'T BE BAITED
The people of a strong, secure country are confident enough to laugh off these slights, and not be baited into an angry frenzy. Come on Singapore. We are better than this.
MR CALVIN CHENG, former Nominated Member of Parliament, in a Facebook post yesterday.
Ms May Tse, who was among those supporting the bank's move, said that she thought the picture was offensive, more so since it was posted just days after Singapore's National Day.
"Whether or not you designed the image is irrelevant. You should not be sharing something that so obviously defaces a national flag," the housewife said. "It is not surprising that so many Singaporeans were offended and given that DBS is a local bank, I support their decision to part ways with him.
Mr Patnaik, a permanent resident who has lived in Singapore for a decade, had told The Straits Times that he did not design the image. He also said that he had first seen it posted on various individual accounts on Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp and that it was circulated widely.
Mr Patnaik is not the first foreigner to have found himself in hot water online after what has been perceived to be an offending post.
In a similar case in 2015, an assistant nurse from the Philippines, Ed Mundsel Bello Ello, was sacked by Tan Tock Seng Hospital after he made disparaging comments about Singaporeans through his Facebook page.
Not everyone, though, agreed with DBS' decision, with some like 24-year-old student Nurul Ismail describing it as too drastic.
"In cases where mistakes are made, we should have some leeway for people to show remorse and learn from their errors," she said.
"Singaporeans are becoming more vicious online and these witch hunts make us look very bad - especially when people go to the extent of threatening families or employers."
Former Nominated Member of Parliament Calvin Cheng yesterday said he did not approve of the type of "nationalism" and "national pride that stirs up online mobs to anger whenever they feel a foreigner has insulted Singapore or Singaporeans online".
"The people of a strong, secure country are confident enough to laugh off these slights, and not be baited into an angry frenzy. Come on Singapore. We are better than this," Mr Cheng said in a Facebook post.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Mixed reactions to DBS' handling of 'ripped Singapore flag' incident​

Some question if employers are overreacting because of pressure from online vigilantes; experts urge caution​

In a Facebook post, DBS said that Mr Avijit Das Patnaik was "no longer with the bank" as of Aug 24. PHOTO: ST FILE

Ankita Varma

AUG 31, 2018

DBS Bank's move to part ways with an employee who sparked controversy with a social media post has ignited debate about whether bosses are overreacting to pressure generated by online vigilantes.
DBS issued a statement on Facebook on Tuesday stating that employee Avijit Das Patnaik was no longer working at the bank.
The Indian national and Singaporean permanent resident posted a picture on the Singapore Indians and Expats page on Facebook on Aug 15 that showed the Singapore flag being ripped apart to reveal India's flag underneath. The group has around 11,000 members.
The outrage was swift, with many people taking screenshots, seeking out his employer through his LinkedIn profile and filing police reports. Though Mr Patnaik removed the post and was remorseful, he was asked a few days later to help police with their investigations and a DBS disciplinary committee was convened. Police inquiries are ongoing.
Many netizens felt that defacing the national flag warranted outrage, even though the image had already been circulating online and Mr Patnaik did not design it.
Retiree T.S. Chew, 66, who shared DBS' update on the incident online alongside a thumbs-up emoticon, said he felt the punishment was valid. "DBS is a local bank so of course they should be outraged by something like this," he said.
"He posted it into a group with a lot of members and it would go against the values of a local bank to ignore an incident like this, especially by a foreigner against his host country."


Dr Carol Soon, senior research fellow and head of the arts, culture and media research cluster at the Institute of Policy Studies, noted: "While individuals curate how they present themselves to different audiences, organisations too are mindful of how they are perceived by the public and fear reputational loss.
"This is why they may move to distance themselves from the employee and his action."
Though DBS has not disclosed whether Mr Patnaik resigned or was sacked, there are many online who feel that the decision to part ways with him was an overreaction.

"While I do not condone his actions, I definitely think that intention matters and in this case, it was obviously not malicious," said graduate student Timothy Tan, 28.
"He misinterpreted the image and apologised but people were baying for blood just because he is a foreigner. The whole thing just has very xenophobic undertones to it."
Whether employers would react the same way if a local was the one who shared the image online is anyone's guess, say experts.
But double standards aside, they caution against falling prey to the pressure and sway of online vigilantes, who may get encouraged if their demands for extreme measures are met time and again.
"Though companies are on solid legal grounds to dismiss employees in instances where they say unfavourable things online, it is important to also consider the intent and extent of the transgression," said Singapore Management University law don Eugene Tan. "Alternatives should be considered and companies should think about whether they would respond in the same way had the matter been internal and not escalated online."
Professor Vivian Lim, deputy head of the Department of Management and Organisation at the National University of Singapore Business School, said there is a growing need for human resource departments to educate all employees - foreigners and locals alike - about the possible implications of their actions online.
"The lines between our personal and professional identities are getting more grey and as a result, what you say online can have implications on your organisation's identity," she said.
The flag incident has shaken up the expat Indian community here, many of whom were shocked by the DBS update.
Tax specialist Shruti Sinha, 33, said she no longer has a Facebook page and has been very wary about her usage on social media since she came to Singapore two years ago.
"I think what Mr Patnaik did was very stupid but it was a mistake, and I feel that he should have been counselled for it but should not have had to lose his job," she added.
"Incidents like this are hard because all foreigners get generalised as a result. In the aftermath, we are all on tenterhooks because these online mobs can lash out at anyone - even those who love this country, work hard and are trying very hard to integrate with the locals."

---

Foreigners named and shamed​

(From left) Filipino assistant nurse Ed Mundsel Bello Ello, Briton Anton Casey and Australian national and Singapore permanent resident Amy Cheong. PHOTOS: ST FILE, BERNICE WONG, AMY CHEONG
This is not the first time a foreigner has been publicly shamed for offending Singaporeans online.
In 2016, Australian Sonny Truyen made several expletive-laden comments in a public Facebook group on how mobile app Pokemon Go was not yet available in Singapore.
It escalated into a war of words with Facebook user Adelene Kong telling him to leave Singapore. Mr Truyen retorted that he was "here because of the lack of local talent" and said "locals can't even read" - a conversation which quickly went viral. He was fired a day later by property search portal 99.co.
Filipino assistant nurse Ed Mundsel Bello Ello was sacked by Tan Tock Seng Hospital in 2015 after he made disparaging comments about Singaporeans on his Facebook page.
In 2014, Briton Anton Casey sparked a furore by calling public transport users "poor people". He left for Australia because of threats made against his family.
Australian national and Singapore permanent resident Amy Cheong fled to Perth in 2012 after her racist and derogatory comments on her Facebook page about Malays and the duration of their weddings had her sacked as an assistant director with the NTUC.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Connectivity issues with Nets QR code affect some e-payment users, including DBS PayLah!​

Some users may have experienced "temporary difficulties" while making Nets QR code payments, due to connectivity issues from 11.59am to 12.33pm on Sept 19, 2018. ST PHOTO: TIMOTHY DAVID

Tee Zhuo

SEP 22, 2018

SINGAPORE - Some e-payment users, including those of DBS's PayLah app, may have unwittingly made double payments on Wednesday (Sept 19).
In a Facebook post on Friday evening, Nets, the payment service provider, apologised and said that some users may have experienced "temporary difficulties" while making Nets QR code payments, due to connectivity issues from 11.59am to 12.33pm that day.
A Nets spokesman told The Straits Times on Saturday that its QR code system had encountered an "unexpected scenario" that prevented some payment requests from being completed.
"This resulted in an unusual number of failed transactions which was picked up by our monitoring system and the matter was rectified immediately," it said.
The Nets spokesman added that the security of the system was not compromised, and that it had enhanced the system to ensure similar incidents do not recur.
DBS's PayLah!, OCBC Bank's Pay Anyone, United Overseas Bank's (UOB) Mighty and Nets' own NetsPay all use Nets' QR code system.
Mr Dominic Ying, OCBC Bank's vice president of group brand and communications, said there were no incidents of double payments for OCBC Pay Anyone app users on Sept 19.

A UOB spokesman said that the bank's customers have not reported similar issues when making payments on the UOB Mighty mobile banking app.

In its Friday post, Nets said: "For affected DBS PayLah! users, please note that we're working with the bank to automatically effect refunds for duplicate transactions."
Users should see refunds credited to their wallets in three working days, Nets added.

The PayLah app has a "Scan to Pay" feature that allows users to make digital payments, by scanning the Nets QR code provided by a merchant using the app on their mobile phone.
Merchants that offer PayLah as a payment option include several hawker centres, convenience stores, retailers and eateries.
The Nets spokesman explained that duplicate transactions may have occurred if users made a few attempts to pay during this period.
In its post, Nets also advised users to check their e-wallet balance and transaction history, and to e-mail [email protected] if there were discrepancies.
A few PayLah users have also posted on the DBS Facebook page complaining about issues with the app.
User Thomas Tham Ting Hoi said he had tried to use PayLah to pay for his lunch on Sept 19 but ended up having to pay in cash as the payments failed to go through.
However, the online transactions were successful some time later, he said in his post. When he called DBS customer service, he was told to get his refund directly from the merchant, he wrote.
"Does this mean that I cannot trust what the app says on my phone... and I have to approach the merchant myself and hope to get my money back?" Mr Tham added, noting that some of his friends had also encountered similar issues.
DBS replied to Mr Tham in a comment, apologising and asking him to share the merchant's name and the payment amount.
The Nets spokesman said: "We apologise to users who were affected by this incident."

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Man given stern warning over torn flag image​

Former DBS employee Avijit Das Patnaik was investigated under the Singapore Arms and Flag and National Anthem Rules, which has a rule stating that no person shall treat the flag with disrespect. PHOTO: ST FILE

Tee Zhuo

OCT 25, 2018

A former DBS employee who posted an image of a ripped Singapore flag on Facebook has been given a stern warning by police.
In response to queries from The Straits Times, the police yesterday said that the warning was given following investigations and in consultation with the Attorney-General's Chambers.
Mr Avijit Das Patnaik's post in August showed a black T-shirt with a graphic of a Singapore flag being torn, revealing an Indian flag underneath.
Police gave the stern warning on Oct 3.
The 44-year-old was investigated under the Singapore Arms and Flag and National Anthem Rules, which has a rule stating that no person shall treat the flag with disrespect.
Mr Patnaik, a Singapore permanent resident who has lived here for a decade, posted it ahead of India's Independence Day on the Singapore Indians and Expats page on Facebook.
A caption in Hindi said "Phir bhi dil hai…", which roughly translates to "Still my heart is…" and alludes to a popular Hindi song that talks about always feeling love for the motherland, India.

Mr Patnaik told The Straits Times he did not design the image and had not meant to cause offence.
Netizens who saw the post found it offensive, as it showed the Singapore flag being ripped. The image was later taken down.
In an Aug 28 Facebook post, Mr Patnaik's former employer DBS Bank said it "strongly disapproves of such actions by our employees".
The bank added that Mr Patnaik was counselled, a disciplinary committee was convened, and as of Aug 24, he was "no longer with the bank".

Tee Zhuo

 

[mojito]

Untouchable? He will still be CEO while lawlan Wong PM ship is no where in sight.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Ex-DBS manager charged with cheating and making unauthorised access to customer's account​

Former DBS relationship manager Liaw Tick Kwan allegedly accessed a customer's bank account without authority and transferred more than US$102,000 (S$139,000) to other accounts. PHOTO: ST FILE

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

DEC 18, 2018

SINGAPORE - A DBS relationship manager allegedly accessed a customer's bank account without authority and transferred more than US$102,000 (S$139,000) to other accounts.
Liaw Tick Kwan, 37, who has since left the bank, was charged in court on Tuesday (Dec 18) with three counts of cheating, two offences under the Computer Misuse and Cybersecurity Act, and one count of concealing the benefits of his alleged criminal conduct.
Between Sept 10, 2013, and May 28, 2014, Liaw is said to have accessed without authority Mr Chin Tian Loke's bank account before transferring US$83,000 to another account belonging to a firm, Mean Chey International Investment Co.
Liaw is also accused of transferring nearly US$4,700 to a bank account belonging to a woman identified in court as Ms Chou Ching Ping.
Court documents did not reveal details about the connection between Mr Chin and Ms Chou.
Liaw allegedly made another unauthorised access into Mr Chin's bank account on Oct 8, 2014 and transferred nearly US$15,000 to Ms Chou's account.
Liaw is also accused of duping Mr Chin into handing over a cheque for $4,100 on Oct 24, 2013.

He allegedly deceived Mr Chin into believing that the cheque was used to pay fees. Court documents did not state what these fees were for.
Liaw is said to have cheated Ms Chou about a year later, duping her into handing over more than $67,000 in cash.
He is accused of cheating Mr Chin again on March 9, 2015, and allegedly duped him into handing over a cheque for more than $24,000.
Liaw is also accused of concealing the benefits of his alleged criminal conduct involving nearly US$20,000 between May 28 and Oct 8, 2014.
He allegedly transferred the amount from Mr Chin's bank account to one belonging to Ms Chou.
Responding to queries from The Straits Times, a DBS spokesman said: "Mr Liaw has not been with the bank since May 2014. We are not able to comment further as the matter is under police investigation."
Liaw was offered bail of $50,000 and will be back in court on Jan 15 next year.
If convicted of cheating, he can be jailed for up to 10 years as well as fined for each charge.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Bank official's access to account unsettling​

The DBS Asia Hub located at the Changi Business Park.
ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG

MAR 16, 2019

A recent experience with DBS Bank made me wonder how serious it is about observing client privacy.
On March 11, a DBS banker called and arranged to meet me to discuss a new "savings plan".
We met the following day at my neighbourhood DBS branch. When I arrived, the banker showed me a statement of my account with all my numbers plain to see. I was mystified.
I asked him when I had given him permission to access my account and to print out these numbers on a sheet of paper to carry around.
I should note that prior to showing me the numbers, he had asked me for my identification, which I did not have on me.
He showed them to me anyway, even though he had no way of knowing if I was, indeed, the person I said I was. When I pointed this out to him, he became flustered and apologised.
In response to my question of whether he had my permission to access my account, the young banker apologised again.

He told me that the right protocol would have been to meet me in person, verify my identity, then ask for my permission before accessing my account in front of me to discuss the financial plan he was proposing.
What he had done, instead, was to access my account without my permission and run a simulation model of my potential earnings beforehand, so that he would have something to present to me when we met.
While I give the young man props for his work ethic, I am curious as to whether he had indeed violated my privacy and what the bank has to say about this.
I am uncomfortable knowing that any financial planner from DBS is able to access my banking information, know how much money I am saving and, in effect, try to sell me a financial plan.
I should also say that what he described as a "savings plan" was really a retirement insurance plan, which I politely declined.

Yen Feng

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

DBS chief Piyush Gupta enjoys 15.5% pay hike to $11.9m for 2018​

Out of his total remuneration, Mr Piyush Gupta saw increases in his cash bonus and share plan to $4.5 million and $6.1 million respectively, on top of salary of $1.2 million, unchanged from the previous year. PHOTO: ST FILE

MAR 28, 2019

SINGAPORE - DBS Group Holdings chief executive Piyush Gupta enjoyed a 15.5 per cent pay rise to $11.9 million for 2018, making it his best year, according to bank's latest annual report out on Thursday (March 28).
Out of his total remuneration, Mr Gupta saw increases in his cash bonus and share plan to $4.5 million and $6.1 million respectively, on top of salary of $1.2 million, unchanged from the previous year. Other remuneration representing non-cash components comprising club, car and driver was marginally down at $62,527.
In 2017, Mr Gupta earned $10.3 million, up 23 per cent as South-east Asia's biggest bank saw wealth management income quadrupling while net profit increased 4 per cent to a record $4.39 billion. But in 2016, his pay fell 23 per cent to $8.4 million as profits slipped on bad debts from its oil and gas loans. Mr Gupta's previous best pay year was in 2015, when he took home $10.9 million.
For 2018, DBS saw total income hit a new high of $13.2 billion while net profit rose 28 per cent to a record $5.63 billion. Return on equity (ROE) was at 12.1 per cent, a level last seen in 2007, the bank said in its annual report.
Last year was also the year the bank evolved its decade-old positioning as "Living, Breathing Asia" to "Live more, Bank less" to showcase its shift to being digital to the core. In the annual report's letter from DBS chairman Peter Seah and Mr Gupta, the company said good progress has been made in this shift.
As at end-2018, more than 80 per cent of its open systems were cloud-ready, up from 66 per cent in 2017, said DBS. Last year, the bank also continued to build on its API (application programming interface) platform launched in 2017, and now has over 350 APIs enabling third-party brands to integrate its technologies to make banking simpler.
On the data front, the company established an analytics centre of excellence and trained over 10,000 of its employees on a data-driven curriculum, along with developing a framework on responsible data usage, according to the annual report.

The bank also launched marketplaces on its website, allowing it to sell cars, property and electricity. Its car marketplace attracted more than a half million unique visits since its August 2017 launch, while its property marketplace generated more than $300 million in home loan requests within 12 months.
The bank also struck more than 25 partnerships regionally in both consumer banking and institutional banking. This includes Gojek, Carousell, and credit underwriting partners like Experian, Perfios and Perfindo.
In its annual report, DBS said it continues to see an increase in customer acquisition through digital channels. In the region, one in five new mortgages was acquired online in 2018, up from one in 25 a year ago. In Hong Kong, one in three SME accounts was opened online, compared to one in four the year prior.

 

[Tarkett]

All these will not happened if the ceo is a china compatriot de woh!

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Widow left with $99 after life savings of $55,000 wiped out in Viber scam; police investigating​

The woman had provided the caller, who claimed to be from DBS Bank, with her bank card number and iBanking PIN. PHOTOS: LABINA FARIAH/FACEBOOK
Cherlynn Ng

JAN 17, 2020

SINGAPORE (STOMP) - The police are investigating an incident in which a 60-year-old woman had her life savings of $55,000 wiped out from her bank account after falling victim to a scam that was carried out through messaging platform Viber.
In a post on Tuesday (Jan 14), Facebook user Labina Fariah outlined how her mother, who is a widow, was duped by the scammer.
Calling for netizens not to judge her mother, Ms Labina said she decided to share details of the incident to warn others so they would not have to go through the same ordeal.
She wrote: "This should be a warning to all of us who have parents, no matter how educated they might be, they can be lost in their own space too."
According to Ms Labina, someone had called her mother on Viber and claimed to be from DBS Bank on Monday afternoon.
The caller told her mother that "he was going to check on her account as he noticed that the account was being hacked".
Despite having some doubts and asking why the call was made via Viber instead of a local number, Ms Labina's mother "fell for his words" and provided the caller with her bank card number and iBanking PIN.

"My mother's entire life saving were wiped out just with one single OTP (one-time password) and she was only left with $99," wrote Ms Labina.
Her mother sensed that something was amiss when she received an e-mail notifying her about a transfer of $17,999.05.
Panic-stricken, she called Ms Labina, who told her to go update her bank book.

The scammer was still on the phone at that point in time.

"After wiping out $54,999.06 from a widow, he still wanted more," Ms Labina said.
"That was when I realised (my mother) was just left with $99. She broke down and I am not sure how to make things right for her."
A police report was made on the same day.
The police confirmed with Stomp that a report was lodged and investigations are being carried out.
Ms Labina said that when her mother broke down, it "felt as if I was punched in my gut".
"To many of us, the amount is small but my friends, that was my mother's life savings. It was all taken away from her within 30 minutes," she said.
"I wish I were a better daughter who could walk up to her and tell her, screw it, I will just give it to you. I feel rotten."
Ms Labina questioned how the huge transaction was allowed to go through despite its dubious nature. She also sought advice about blocking such transactions and retrieving the money.
When contacted about the case by Stomp, DBS Bank said it wanted to remind customers to always be vigilant and never give out their personal security information, enter sensitive information into unknown websites, click on URL links originating from unknown sources, or reply to unsolicited SMSes, e-mails or calls.
"Please note that DBS/POSB will never request for our customers to download software, disclose their Internet Banking access credentials (such as username or password, OTP, Digital Token approval), or to conduct any fund transfers over the phone," the bank said.

Customers can contact the bank on its 24-hour hotline on 1800-111-1111 if they notice suspicious or unusual activity in their accounts.
"Scammers are actively targeting bank customers in Singapore via automated calls, voice calls and SMSes, phishing for bank account and personal information that could lead to loss of money," said DBS Bank.
"To raise awareness, DBS has created a short video clip detailing the recent scam tactics and what customers should be aware of."
Ms Labina told Stomp that she was in the process of speaking with DBS Bank about the matter.
She added: "My mother's experience should be a learning point for so many vulnerable people."
In an advisory on Tuesday, the police warned members of the public about similar scams that targeted bank customers.

Besides the aforementioned Viber scam, other variants of the scam had victims getting calls with an automated voice message purportedly from the bank, informing that their bank account had been locked or would be cancelled.
Victims were then asked to press a number and the call would be transferred to someone claiming to be a staff member from the bank.
Another variant of the scam involved victims receiving an SMS message purportedly from the bank, informing them that their ATM card had been blocked or deactivated.
The victims were directed to call a specified number to reactivate their ATM card.
The police said that they have received at least 60 reports of such scams since January 2019, with total losses amounting to at least $1.6 million.