DBS CashLine Garners 40,000 Applications Within Six weeks Of Launch

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Overwhelming Response Surpasses Industry Standards

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Low Interest Rate And Attractive Promotion Spurs Good Response

SINGAPORE, NOV 27 - DBS Bank today said it has received more than 40,000 applications for its new credit facility, CashLine, in the six weeks since its launch on October 17.

CashLine, an unsecured revolving personal credit facility, offers customers one of the lowest interest rates in the market at 12 per cent per annum.

Raymond Ang, vice president and head of loans for DBS consumer banking group, said the good response for CashLine shows customers believe in the terrific value proposition on offer.

"We are delighted with the strong take-up rate. We have set a target of 50,000 customers for CashLine in the first year, and are extremely encouraged that we've exceeded the three-quarter mark in just six weeks of launch. This will certainly motivate us to continue to offer new and better products and services to address the needs of our customers," Ang said.

The response to CashLine surpassed industry standards. According to market statistics, personal credit line products usually see take-up rate of around 35,000 per year.

DBS officials attribute the low interest rate and attractive promotional offers to the exceptional response to CashLine.

Officials say one of the main draws for CashLine customers is that they will enjoy a stable interest rate at 12 per cent. This was an important feature in the CashLine value proposition that DBS took on board from findings revealed by its consumer research. The research indicated that customers are no longer looking for short-term promotional rates in an unsecured personal credit facility, contrary to what is largely offered in the market today.

"In these challenging times, CashLine offers customers a competitively priced credit alternative, one that offers them non-gimmick and fair-value interest rates," Ang said.

Another main draw for CashLine is its promotional offer. DBS has tied-up with popular brand-name partners like Motorola, Palm and Singapore Cable Vision, to provide incentives for new CashLine customers. Customers who use CashLine to sign-up for Singapore Cable Vision's (SCV) Discounted Package will receive a top-of-the-line Motorola V60 mobile phone and the latest Palm m125 handheld. The V60 comes without any mobile phone plan, so customers have the flexibility to continue using their existing SIM cards.

In response to customers' feedback, DBS is also giving customers more choices with the launch of two new offer packages. From Wednesday, it will introduce two packages offering either a Compaq Presario desktop or laptop computer for CashLine customers. The desktop package includes a Pentium 4 processor with Windows XP, inkjet colour printer, scanner and CD software. CashLine customers who sign up for either package will continue to receive the Motorola phone and handheld Palm.

"We are committed to listening to our customers. Offering the new additional packages to provide customers with more choices to suit their lifestyle is an example of our initiatives to continually review, and improve our product offering. We hope our customers will now find the CashLine proposition even more attractive," Ang said.

CashLine offers customers a revolving credit line of up to two times their monthly income. Funds can be easily accessed via a cheque book or at any of the more than 900 ATMs throughout Singapore using an ATM card, and interest charged is only on the amount used. Existing DBS and POSB customers enjoy the convenience of having their ATM cards automatically linked to their CashLine accounts.

To qualify for CashLine, customers need to meet certain minimum criteria. For Singaporeans and Permanent Residents, they need to be aged between 21 to 60 years old, residing in Singapore and with an annual income of at least S$30,000.

DBS Group Holdings Ltd is the holding company of DBS Bank and is the largest banking group in Southeast Asia. Ranked among the top banks in Asia, DBS Bank is a recognised leader in Internet banking and e-commerce. Beyond Singapore, DBS Group serves corporate, institutional and retail customers through subsidiaries and associated companies in Hong Kong, The Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand, and international banking services through a network of overseas branches and offices. With its acquisition of Dao Heng Bank in June, 2001, DBS is the fourth largest bank in Hong Kong by assets.