DBS Responds To Customers' Wage Squeeze With Mortgage 1-2-3

* * *

Flexible mortgage plan will cut monthly payments by as much as 80%

* * *

Mortgage 1-2-3 Program Will Address DBS' Customers And Shareholder Needs

SINGAPORE, May 29, 2003 - DBS launched today a flexible mortgage program that caters to the needs of homeowners under the current economic climate. Called DBS Mortgage 1-2-3, the mortgage payment plan for both the private and HDB homeowners offers benefits that include flexible and reduced monthly mortgage payments and low interest rates for the first three years.

Edmund Koh, DBS' Managing Director and Head, Consumer Banking Group Singapore, said: "The crux of our plan is the flexible solutions it offers to existing and aspiring home owners, taking into account the soft economic conditions."

Benefit One: Flexible Mortgage Payment Plan
DBS Mortgage 1-2-3 is a needs-based mortgage solution that will ease both the existing and new private and HDB homeowners' household cash flow and provide them with more savings on hand for alternative uses. This plan is timely and well-suited for those also affected by wage cuts and reduced rental income from their properties.

Under this plan, homeowners have the flexibility of choosing to pay the first three years of their mortgage plan with interest payment only or with lower interest and principal payment. Customers taking up the DBS Mortgage 1-2-3 plan are also assured that the step-up monthly payments after the third year is gradual.

Benefit Two: Reduced Mortgage Payment
Existing homeowners currently paying monthly instalments pegged to higher interest rates will find DBS Mortgage 1-2-3 very attractive as this plan will help reduce their monthly instalments by as much as 80% and provide them with greater flexibility to draw on their savings for alternative uses.

For the homebuyers who may not have built up enough savings to buy their dream homes, DBS Mortgage 1-2-3 can help them own that dream home sooner. They can choose to pay only the interest on their home loans for the initial three years. The gradual increase in monthly instalments after the first three years should not pose a problem for them as their income should also rise by then.

"In a situation where income is affected either by lower rental yields from investment in properties or through wage restraints, DBS Mortgage 1-2-3 will offer homeowners the security of continuing to own their properties by easing their cashflow during this period. Even for those unaffected, our plan will allow them to have more savings from their existing mortgage plans, " Koh added.

Benefit Three: Savings on Interest
DBS Mortgage 1-2-3 offers low floating interest rates of 1% per annum for the first, 2% per annum for the second and 3% per annum for the third year for new and refinanced private property loans.

For HDB properties, DBS' interest rates are pegged attractively at fixed rates of 1.5% per annum for the first, 2.4% per annum for the second and at a floating rate of 2.55% per annum for the third year.

In a typical example, a customer taking up a housing loan of $500,000 for a 30-year loan tenure under the DBS Mortgage 1-2-3 plan can opt to service the first three years of his mortgage with interest payment only or with lower interest and principal payment.

Under a normal mortgage plan, customer will incur an average monthly payment of $2,372. With DBS Mortgage 1-2-3, customer choosing the option of paying only the interest for the first three years will pay as low as $417 a month. That is a potential savings of $1,955 per month.

In essence, for the first three years of the plan, the customer's potential payment savings is up to $144,000 if he chooses to pay the interest only, and a potential of up to $90,000 in savings if he chooses to pay with lower interest and principal amount. Thereafter, his monthly payments will be stepped-up gradually. Click here on the illustration.

Other Benefits
In addition to the three key benefits, customers who take up DBS Mortgage 1-2-3 will also get to enjoy up to full legal subsidy, fair market valuation and be assured of a quick turnaround time for their applications. They can also enjoy the best rate for their secured overdraft which is pegged to DBS Prime Rate of 4.25% per annum, the lowest rate offered in town.

Customers who wish to sign up for DBS Mortgage 1-2-3 plan, can contact home loan specialists at 1800-222-6333 or visit the following DBS branches for private property loans and POSB branches for HDB property loans from tomorrow.

All DBS and POSB branches will open for an extended two hours till 3 pm this Saturday and 25 DBS and POSB branches will open this Sunday especially for homeowners.

Branches that will be opened this Sunday are:

Branches that will be opened this Sunday are:

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.