What are significant risk transfers – and why is DBS reportedly considering them?

[SINGAPORE] A week ago, media reports surfaced that DBS – South-east Asia’s largest lender – is weighing a foray into significant risk transfers (SRTs), putting this relatively niche corner of bank capital management into the spotlight.

DBS is reportedly considering an SRT transaction and in talks with funds that invest in such instruments, after Standard Chartered carried out a similar deal in 2025 tied to US$1.5 billion of trade finance loans, Bloomberg reported on Jan 8. That move allowed Standard Chartered to obtain regulatory capital relief for its Singapore subsidiary.

The Business Times looks at what SRTs are, why DBS might be evaluating such a structure, and how likely Singapore’s other local banks – OCBC and UOB – are to pursue similar transactions.