DBS Bank eyes more Asian banks

DBS Bank eyes more Asian banks

SINGAPORE (Reuters): Singapore's acquisitive DBS Bank plans to buy more Asian banks in a bid to build itself as a leading regional bank, vice president and chief executive officer John Olds said on Monday.

Speaking to reporters at a lunch meeting, Olds, an ex-JP Morgan banker who joined DBS seven months ago, said: "We are going to have to do more before we can be viewed as a regional franchise. We are still a Singapore franchise."

"We see an opportunity to be an Asian bank staffed by Asians whose predominant focus is in Asia."

As the government-linked bank concentrated on consolidating its franchise in the region, it would not consider selling out or merging with an international banking group, he said.

"My focus is regional. It is up to the next management team to decide whether it wants to go global."

Olds said DBS, which has drawn up a three-year plan after a review with consultants McKinsey and Co and A.T. Kearney, would target big banks in future acquisitions as opposed to small to medium-sized banks in its earlier forays.

DBS, the country's largest bank as measured by shareholders equity of Singapore $8.2 billion (US$4.8 billion), went on a buying spree in the region last year.

It bought POSBank from the Singapore government and controlling stakes in Thailand's Thai Danu Bank, Philippines' Bank of Southeast Asia and Hong Kong's Kwong Oon Bank.

"We will continue to be opportunistic in our acquisitions but we will be careful about small and medium-sized banks," Old said, adding that to integrate a small bank was as time-consuming as assimilating a larger one.

He said DBS would "love to make a significant acquisition in Malaysia" but banking rules there did not allow for such a move. He said DBS had held some talks with parties in Malaysia but it was not willing to sink in capital and other resources unless it could obtain a controlling stake in a bank there.