DBS named best bank globally for third consecutive year

DBS has been named the best bank in the world by New York-based financial publication Global Finance, marking the third year in the row that the Singapore-headquartered bank has received the accolade from a financial publication.

DBS was also Global Finance's pick for "Best Bank in the World" in 2018, and was named "Global Bank of the Year" by Financial Times publication The Banker in the same year. In 2019, DBS was named "World's Best Bank" by financial publication Euromoney.

Joseph D Giarraputo, publisher and editorial director of Global Finance, said: "This year, a worldwide pandemic has upended commerce and made forecasting even more difficult, yet business must continue. DBS Bank is exemplary of a bank that was ready for the sharp rise in demand for digital banking services during the pandemic."

He noted how over the past decade, DBS invested heavily in all things digital and created a culture for banking that is inclusive and efficient. He said those investments are paying off at a time of economic uncertainty, and have strengthened the bank's resilience and helped it to serve its customers in their time of need.

In selecting the world's best bank every year, Global Finance considers factors including growth in assets, profitability, geographic reach, strategic relationships, new business development, reputation and management excellence, use of technology and digitisation, and innovation in products.

It also notes the opinions of equity analysts, credit rating analysts, banking consultants and others involved in the industry. During the pandemic, Global Finance also paid special attention to banks that attended carefully to their customers' needs in difficult markets and accomplished better results while laying the foundations for future success.

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Past winners include Bank of America in 2019, ING in 2017, and BNP Paribas (Corporate) and Royal Bank of Canada (Consumer) in 2016 when the award was split into consumer and corporate banking.

DBS CEO Piyush Gupta said banks play an integral role in supporting employees, customers and the wider community during this extraordinarily difficult time.

"We are humbled by the acknowledgement of our efforts on this front, particularly how our investments in digital, and our culture of inclusivity, have enabled us to serve customers in their time of need. This underlies our whole focus on being a purpose-driven bank doing real things for real people for real economies," he said.