DBS Group CEO Tan Su Shan carries a monochrome image on her mobile phone showing her as a four-year-old, positioned next to her mother and grandmother. At Singapore's Nanyang Preschool. This captures a moment in time showcasing three generations of influential women. Widowed during the Japanese occupation, Tan's grandmother successfully raised seven children. Tan remembers her upbringing during an era when women typically lacked educational opportunities. Despite being denied formal education, she became self-taught and demanded that her daughters, Tan's mother being the youngest, achieve academic success, secure employment, and be Financially secure. Tan describes her grandmother as a "hurricane force" and attributes her mother, a pharmacist, with "inculcating that in me."
Tan is tapping into that tradition as the inaugural female chief of Southeast Asia's preeminent financial institution. In March, she assumed the role of chief executive, replacing Piyush Gupta, who over his 15-year leadership had transformed DBS from a conservative national lender into One of the globe's most technologically sophisticated and financially successful financial giants. Leading a financial institution with 38,000 staff, a presence in 19 nations, and over $600 billion in managed assets presents a significant challenge for its CEO, Tan. Ge: to maintain that exceptional pace and continue taking market share from significantly larger international rivals during a period characterized by geopolitical instability Falling interest rates, and rapid technological advancement.
With this in mind, Tan and her management group have adopted an approach that blends time-honored principles of dependability and security with cutting-edge innovations. Such as artificial intelligence, blockchains, and cryptocurrencies. She plans to explore new markets in Asia and the Gulf states while overhauling DBS's organizational structure and culture to foster a unified "one bank" ethos. And feel more integrated.
Resilience is a theme Tan frequently discusses. According to her, Piyush's leadership provided a robust foundation, enabling them to face future challenges. However, I also anticipate challenges ahead. I've advised my colleagues that this year will be unpredictable, so it's wise to prepare for a rough ride.
DBS, much like Tan, emerged from a background of scarcity. DBS, initially known as the Development Bank of Singapore, was founded by Singapore's government in 1968, three years after the city-state's decla Established its autonomy from Malaysia, being assigned the responsibility of offering sustained financial support for industrial and infrastructural initiatives considered vital to Sin Singapore's continued existence. This necessitated significant, hard-to-sell investments in areas such as shipping, manufacturing, property, and utilities – ventures that most private banks viewed as O dangerous.
The new organization faced difficulties in securing funds, finding collaborators, and hiring skilled financial professionals to achieve its growth objectives. However, during its initial ten years, DBS funded the construction of power plants and water treatment facilities, as well as Singapore's prominent industrial area and extensive container The port; the nation's shipping company; Singapore Airlines and Changi Airport; along with the state's extensive public housing initiative.
As Singapore's economy matured throughout the 1980s and 1990s, DBS transitioned to offering comprehensive commercial and consumer lending services. DBS's 1998 purchase of Singapore’s Post Office Savings Bank brought 3 million new customers into the fold, solidifying DBS's position as the leading retail bank in Singapore. DBS has also extended its reach internationally, notably by purchasing Hong Kong’s Dao Heng Bank in 2001 and Citigroup’s consumer banking operations in Taiwan in 2022. With over 500 branches in India and 30 in Indonesia, DBS now derives more than 30% of its group profits from international operations.
However, before Gupta, an experienced Citigroup executive, became CEO in 2009, DBS was known as a conservative, bureaucratic bank that Gave little thought to how customers felt. Gupta spearheaded a comprehensive transformation that began with the company's culture. He advocated for trying new things, working together, and prioritizing the client. He urged the company to make significant investments in digital technologies, asserting that DBS needed to "behave more like a tech company and less like a bank." T This approach, focused on extensive cloud adoption and the utilization of data analytics and AI, was instrumental in their early success, predating widespread industry acceptance of these technologies. Financial institutions DBS introduced a mobile-centric banking approach in Singapore, streamlined the digital account opening procedure, and established integrated payment solutions. DBS established "digibanks" in India and Indonesia, successfully acquiring millions of customers at a significantly lower expense than creating a traditional branch network.
The result was stunning. Gupta's last year in his position was 2024, DBS saw its revenues surge to $17.3 billion, five times higher than when he took over in 2009.. Last year saw profits skyrocket to an all-time high of $8.8 billion. Concurrently, return on equity climbed to 18%, a significant increase from the approximately 7% observed when Gupta first took office, rendering DBS is recognized as one of the most profitable financial institutions globally.
After graduating from Oxford University with a degree in politics, philosophy, and economics, Tan commenced her banking career at Morgan Stanley's Singapore office. Economic principles Her career path led her through investment banking and wealth management, including a period at ING Barings, before she moved to Citi Private Bank. There, she experienced rapid advancement to become Leading private banking for Singapore, Malaysia, and Brunei, earning a reputation as one of Asia's sharpest private bankers.
In 2010, Gupta brought her to DBS with the objective of expanding and updating the bank's wealth management operations. In 2013, she assumed leadership of both consumer banking and wealth management. Tan received commendation for her unwavering dedication to customer satisfaction and her passionate use of data and artificial intelligence to create innovative, enhanced experiences. Tailored financial solutions As a result of her guidance, DBS was recognized as Asia's premier private bank.
Gupta appointed Tan to lead DBS’s institutional banking division in 2019, a segment catering to major corporations and government entities, and alongside wealth management, And consumer banking, which is part of the group's operations, also significantly contributes to its overall earnings. As part of that responsibility, she urged her team to explore practical applications of AI and machine learning for assessing company finances, an endeavor she believes was instrumental in DBS steered clear of numerous unprofitable ventures and managed to bypass the most severe impact of mainland China's residential property downturn.
"Our entire team of bankers has undergone intensive training and rigorous assessment focused on cash flow management," she explained. That was the wisest decision we made. When our bankers assess a company, they look beyond mere physical assets like a ship or a hotel; their perspective is far more complex. Let's crunch the numbers, dear. Even the most luxurious hotel is useless if you lack the funds to afford it; it becomes an expensive, impractical burden.
In his capacity as head of institutional banking, Tan has played a significant role in nurturing DBS’s relationships with its corporate clients and overseeing its international ventures, while also contending with complex Issues of credit risk, adherence to regulations, geopolitical influences, and extended corporate planning.
Tan described Gupta as a "terrific mentor and a demanding leader." Speaking broadly at DBS's stylish headquarters, which offers views of Singapore's Marina Bay, Tan made these remarks. She highlighted that, in her role as CEO, her leadership approach would diverge from that of her predecessor in at least two significant aspects.
I've warned colleagues, "Expect a turbulent year, so brace yourselves."
Tan Su Shan, CEO, DBS Group
One development is her appointment of long-standing associate Derrick Goh to a new chief operating officer position, granting him extensive authority over All banking operations and revenue streams. "Piyush and I were very complementary," she stated. My contributions to our relationships include extensive customer insight. I delve thoroughly into companies, and I believe I possess a keen business sense. He possessed a strong focus on process and was bold enough to initiate change. I've established a COO office to provide me with support. I need a capable COO, and Derrick fits that role perfectly. He'll be instrumental in helping me grasp our operations comprehensively, bringing a highly structured and disciplined approach, and ensuring we rely on data to guide our decisions. He needs to have a robust... Governance, a framework for resilience.
The second phase, dubbed the “one-bank initiative” by Tan, involved organizing staff by business segment: consumer, corporate, and markets, as spearheaded by Piyush. I've maintained that but am now adopting a singular bank, singular customer strategy. Our small and medium-sized enterprise clients may also be considered wealth clients. We will also be engaging in trades through our treasury and markets operations. How is all this information consolidated? How can we align tech and ops with the marketing message globally, across different customer segments and business units?
Tan feels the new corporate structure helps enable that transition. “When a client wishes to open an account with us [at DBS], it’s unnecessary for me to re-request their existing information,” she states. If agentic AI is suitable for payment processing, then it should also be applied to serving small businesses. My aim is to minimize redundant work. I've consolidated all my operational responsibilities into a single individual, and similarly grouped all my technical functions under another, to ensure a comprehensive banking experience.
Additionally, she anticipates the unified banking model will assist DBS in discovering novel methods to assist customers in the "white spaces" that exist between its established business sectors. Previously, my finance department associates would interact with private equity funds, bypassing my private banking colleagues, she explains. Yet now, they observe them as a pair. If it's a top-tier fund, my private banking advisor ought to be offering it to our clients. When the fund invests in businesses we already serve as their bank, an expert is required. I envision our team delivering the entire banking experience directly to our customers.
Tan views AI as an essential instrument for realizing that "whole bank" objective, and she persistently urges her team to fully embrace the new technology. Technology. Using AI, you can ask, "What should I tell this client I'm meeting shortly?" She asks, "How can I deliver the entire DBS to the client?" You are not confined to operating in isolation.
Tan follows her own counsel. At the Fortune Brainstorm AI conference held in Singapore during July, she happily recounted an instance of "arriving at a client pitch rather unprepared" and discreetly glancing at her phone Secretly bent under the table to discreetly prompt an AI program for assistance. “The client exclaimed, ‘Wow, you understand my business perfectly!’ So I admit I took a shortcut,” she confessed with a smile.
Tan recounted at the Fortune event, “The day my CEO role was announced, I was in a WhatsApp group with my board.” I received a WhatsApp message suggesting that even the CEO's position is susceptible to replacement by AI. If AI can replace me, it can replace anything.
Tan urges employees to view AI as a transformative tool enabling them to become "superhuman bankers," rather than as a threatening force poised to replace them. Their employment. She points to the case of customer service representatives who answer calls from clients. Our service team is exceptional. A growing portion of their tasks is now being handled by our digital assistants. Consequently, our employees are asking, "How can I reorient my career?" My response is, "This is an excellent development!" A number of my clients lack a dedicated relationship manager. Could you perhaps rebrand yourself as a relationship manager? This would entail a significant psychological adjustment and a shift in your responsibilities. It's an improvement, freeing you from trivial inquiries. Begin contemplating innovative solutions for clients.
Tan was an early proponent among DBS executives of AI's capabilities. In 2014, she recalled attempting to grasp how to employ IBM Watson in the realm of wealth management. “It wasn’successful,” she admits with a chuckle, “but the outcome was irrelevant as we gained valuable lessons from the experience. A team has been assembled. They are still among us.
DBS currently leverages AI extensively for various applications, such as fraud detection, algorithmic credit scoring, employee training, and delivering highly tailored customer experiences via AI-driven prompts. Should a DBS cardholder exceed their typical dining expenditure, the bank might suggest setting aside a portion of the amount. A few hundred dollars to reach financial objectives. For hotel and airline expenditures, cardholders may be prompted to buy DBS travel insurance. This year, Tan anticipates the bank will issue over a billion prompts to its retail customers. The bank asserts it has created over 350 applications for AI and projects that DBS's adoption of AI will yield economic benefits exceeding This year, $780 million.
AI represents an advancement, freeing you from trivial queries so you can focus on innovative concepts.
Tan Su Shan
Tan also wants DBS to focus more on other advanced technologies. These include blockchains, digital assets, and cryptocurrencies, which she anticipates will hold increasing importance for multinational corporations and high-net-worth individuals. Orth families. Tan posits that international tensions, particularly between the two most significant global economic powers, are fueling a need for "alternative payment "rails.” Today, she notes, "anything can be used as a weapon, even the dollar." In that weaponized environment, how do you continue to support your clients in a compliant, anti-money-laundering approved manner?
She also sees the GENIUS Act, a set of U.S. Regulations for stablecoins pegged to the dollar, as a positive development. The congressional actions in July signaled a significant shift towards greater global regulatory acceptance of digital assets. We looked at it and were astonished. “Wow, that was fast!” Remarks Tan. Singapore is now in a state of urgency, as is Hong Kong, and we all find ourselves in a similar predicament. Adaptability is key.
In the last five years, DBS has built a substantial range of blockchain and crypto products for institutional and accredited investors. The following content has been rephrased to retain its original meaning and approximately the same length, with only the rewritten text returned. Existing HTML tags and entities have been preserved precisely. In 2020, the bank introduced DBS Digital Exchange (DDEx), a comprehensive digital asset platform providing tokenization, trading, custody, and securities services. Broken services. In 2022, DBS collaborated with JPMorgan and Temasek, Singapore’s state-owned investment firm and DBS’s primary stakeholder, to launch Partior, a blockchain-based A platform for interbank clearing and settlement operations.
DBS Token Services, launched last year, offers banking clients integrated tokenization and smart contract services, and has partnered with China’s An An international entity plans to launch a trial for managing multiple currencies in its treasury and liquidity operations, leveraging DBS blockchains for accredited investors.
DBS believes its varied array of offerings, blending innovation, trustworthiness, and extensive global presence, will resonate with ultra-high-net-worth families who seek From Asian investors and Gulf states seeking to diversify their portfolios. We are firm in our conviction that families with exceptional wealth should diversify their investments across three distinct regions: Switzerland, the United States, and Singapore. The Singaporean bank should be a digitally active entity capable of tokenization. That's who we are.
Tan strongly champions gender equality and promotes the involvement of women in professional settings. Following her son's birth in 2001, she established the Financial Women’s Association, an organization committed to aiding women within Singapore's financial sector. Professionals wishing to re-enter the workforce after taking time off for childcare or eldercare responsibilities. She notes that many mothers who took time off for work found it difficult to re-enter the workforce. Companies aren'actively avoiding them. The issue is their lack of confidence when it comes to attending interviews. The organization, nearing its 25th year, possesses what Tan refers to as a "huge ecos" System," which has fostered the success of hundreds of women in their careers over the years.
DBS stands out among its Asian counterparts concerning most measures of gender equality. Women comprise almost fifty percent of the bank's workforce, 40% of its leadership team, roughly thirty-three percent of the Group Management Committee, and twenty percent By the directors. There is, however, further scope for advancement. The organization aims to elevate the proportion of women serving on its board to 30 percent, aligning with the standard for publicly traded firms in the U.S. And in Europe by the year 2030.
DBS recognizes the underrepresentation of women in its technical and engineering positions, prompting the initiation of hiring and internal development programs. Solutions to bridge that divide. Tan's selection as CEO strongly signifies the capabilities of women in leadership roles.
Tan attributes her strong female role models during her youth to her grandmother, her mother, and the black-and That l like the image on her phone, a stern woman in a cheongsam and sharp glasses: Nanyang's headmistress. "ready in The Incredibles," she remarks with a chuckle. The headmistress instilled fear in the children, yet she embodied female authority. It was she who later chose Tan to deliver a speech in Chinese at the A milestone celebration for kindergarten graduates. Tan found preparing for that performance to be a challenging but also an honor, marking one of her first experiences being asked to present herself. A study was conducted.
When Tan is in Singapore on weekends, she frequently dedicates time to guiding emerging female entrepreneurs, whom she refers to as her “reverse mentors.” She has assembled a dedicated group of She states, referencing the women entrepreneurs she's supported. I guide their development. Occasionally, I will allocate capital to them. As they mature, they return and impart their knowledge to me. My critics constantly tell me I'm a dinosaur and that my social media presence is terrible.
Whether her social media performance is truly as poor as stated is a matter open for discussion. But a dinosaur, seriously? As Tan urges one of the globe's most agile and digitally adept financial entities to continue its pursuit of innovation, experimentation, and development— And the institution she oversees—appear far from disappearing.
This article is featured in the October/November issue of Asia issue of Fortune.