DBS Opens Up Its E-Banking Services For The Courage Fund

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Move Makes It Easier for DBS and POSB Customers to Contribute to the Fund at Their Own Convenience

SINGAPORE, APRIL 23, 2003 - DBS announced today that it has made available its Internet Banking and Internet Kiosks to customers who wish to contribute to The Courage Fund, which was set up to support the healthcare professionals and SARS victims.

Starting tomorrow (April 24), DBS and POSB customers will be able to use DBS Internet Banking to contribute to The Courage Fund at their own convenience. For those customers without Internet Banking access, they can still go to any of the 59 DBS Internet Kiosks located island-wide and use their DBS or POSB ATM cards to make a donation.

DBS currently has more than 450,000 Internet banking customers and 3.5 million ATM cardholders.

The Courage Fund has been included as a billing organisation under the Bill Payment service and any customer who wish to make a donation to the Fund can do so by debiting their DBS or POSB account. The step-by-step guide is in the Appendix.

Jackson Tai, DBS' Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer said, "More than 90% of Singaporeans currently have an account with either DBS or POSB, and many of them use our E-Banking, including Internet banking, services. It is thus natural that we leverage on our wide reach and technological expertise to help out in this worthy cause. All funds donated to The Courage Fund will be available to the Fund's Board of Trustees immediately for disbursement to the beneficiaries."

"This latest offer is an extension of our efforts to show our support for the extraordinary group of healthcare professionals at the forefront of the SARS crisis and those who are down with the virus disease," he added.

Dr Lim Suet Wun, Chairman of The Courage Fund Working Committee and CEO of Tan Tock Seng Hospital, said, "On behalf of the staff and patients who will benefit from The Courage Fund, I want to thank DBS for making their E-Banking services available. This will make it very convenient for their customers to contribute to the Fund. We are very heartened and encouraged by the support from leading corporations like DBS and the general public."

DBS has already set up a dedicated hotline at 6222 2222 for the healthcare professionals working at Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Communicable Disease Centre and Singapore General Hospital to help them make payments to third parties locally over the phone. This is in recognition of the healthcare professionals' selfless dedication to help the SARS victims and their busy work schedules during the current crisis.

All donations to The Courage Fund qualify for tax exemption and receipts will be mailed to the donors by the Fund's administrators.

The hotline and the special E-Banking arrangements will be available until further notice.

Step-By-Step Guide for Donations to The Courage Fund
A. Internet Banking

1. Login to DBS Internet Banking
2. Click on "Payment Services"
3. Click on "Bill Payment"
4. Select "The Courage Fund" from the billing corporation list
5. Select the deposit account to debit donation
6. Enter NRIC number as the Consumer Reference Number
7. Enter the donation amount

1. Touch the screen to begin
2. Insert your ATM card and Enter PIN when prompted
3. Touch on "Payment Services"
4. Select "Bill Payment"
5. Select "The Courage Fund" from the billing corporation list
6. Enter donation amount and NRIC number as the Consumer Reference Number
7. Select the deposit account to debit donation

About DBS
DBS Bank is the largest bank in Singapore as measured by assets, with dominant positions in consumer banking, treasury and markets, securities brokerage, Singapore dollar loans, deposits, and equity and debt fund raising. With the receipt of executive and legislative approval for the merger of its wholly-owned Dao Heng Bank and DBS Kwong On Bank operations in Hong Kong, DBS Bank is now the fourth largest banking group in Hong Kong. Beyond the anchor markets of Singapore and Hong Kong, DBS Bank serves corporate, institutional and retail customers through its operations in Thailand, The Philippines, and Indonesia. The bank's credit ratings are amongst the highest in the Asia-Pacific region. More information about DBS Group Holdings and DBS Bank can be obtained from our website www.dbs.com.