Tan Su Shan: «Buckle Up, It's Going to be a Volatile Year»
DBS CEO Tan Su Shan said she is telling clients to prepare for turbulence in 2026, though the bank is expected to deliver stable results.
DBS is forecasting that net profit for 2026 will be slightly lower compared to last year, according to the bank’s CEO presentation released as part of its annual results. Income is expected to be at similar levels with lower net interest income offset by high single-digit growth in non-interest income from the commercial book, including a mid-teens increase in wealth management. The cost/income ratio is estimated to be in the low 40 percent range.
For 2025, the bank saw net profit fall 3 percent to S$11 billion ($8.7 billion), with income up 3 percent to a record S$22.9 billion.
Three Moats
In order to maintain its competitive advantage, DBS will depend on three main moats, according to CEO Tan Su Shan in a media briefing.
First is data, which the bank will continue to leverage to enhance its business. Second is trust with a credit rating of ‘AA-' and ‘Aa1’. Third is its culture and Tan mentioned examples such as its workforce’s ability to be nimble and adopt new technologies as well as working approaches.
«The adoption of AI […] has been strong. And we can basically free our staff from mundane work, administration work, and use AI to upskill them,» she shared as a tech example with use cases in areas such as know-your-client (KYC) or credit memo writing processes.
Expect Turbulence
Despite the forecast of stable revenue and profit, Tan warns that 2026 will likely be turbulent, calling February «a year condensed into a month» on the back of a flurry of major events, including elections in Japan and Thailand, and major market movements in the US dollar and Bitcoin.
«What's our 2026 outlook? I think it's hard to predict,» Tan remarked. «So, I tell all our clients: buckle up, it's gonna be a volatile year.»
