DBS Group Shares Notch Record High on Best-Ever Quarterly Profit, Improved Guidance — Update

By Megan Cheah and Amanda Lee

SINGAPORE--DBS Group, Southeast Asia's largest lender, posted its best-ever profit and raised its guidance, sending its shares to an all-time high.

The Singapore-based lender's second quarter net profit rose 9.0% compared with the same period a year earlier, to 3.08 billion Singapore dollars, equivalent to US$2.40 billion, driven by higher noninterest income.

DBS said momentum in its wealth management business continued in the second quarter, with the segment's assets under management surpassing S$500 billion for the first time. It wants to bring this to S$1 trillion with increased digitalization and by supporting clients within and across markets, said Chief Executive Tan Su Shan.

Singapore banks have been focusing on wealth management as they look to diversify revenue sources and capitalize on safe-haven flows.

In June, DBS said it planned to open 18 new wealth hubs by end-2027 and upgrade its 36 existing wealth centers, expanding in Singapore, Hong Kong, mainland China, Indonesia, India and Taiwan.

"We are deeply entrenched in our six core markets...and in building the wealth both offshore and onshore as well," Tan said in a media briefing.

In the second quarter, total income rose 6.0% to S$6.09 billion. A 25% jump in net fee and commission income offset softer net interest income.

Its board declared an ordinary dividend of S$0.66 per share and a capital-return dividend of S$0.15.

DBS also raised its full-year guidance and now expects total income to rise from 2025, instead of its previous expectation for stable income. It also expects its commercial book noninterest income to grow by a mid-teen percentage, instead of a high single digit.

Group net interest income is also likely to rise closer to 2025 levels, assuming interest rates remain at current levels and deposits grow at a high single-digit range, the lender said.

The earnings report and improved guidance sent its shares to an intraday peak of S$75.80 on Thursday. DBS shares have gained about 34% so far this year and last traded 2.1% higher at S$75.10, giving it a market capitalization of roughly S$213 billion.

Investors have piled into Singapore's banking sector, driven by expectations of strong quarterly earnings growth led by improvements in their wealth management businesses.

Despite the relatively high valuations for DBS's shares, they remain a core holding for investors due to the lender's wealth franchise and attractive yield, RHB Research's Singapore team said in a recent note.

DBS's peers Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. and United Overseas Bank are scheduled to report results on Friday.

--P.R. Venkat contributed to this report.

Write to Megan Cheah at megan.cheah@wsj.com and Amanda Lee at amanda.lee@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 06, 2026 02:44 ET (06:44 GMT)