Frank Wong appointed to DBSH Board of Directors

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SINGAPORE, SEPTEMBER 16, 2003 - DBS Group Holdings Ltd (DBSH) announced today the appointment of Frank Wong to the DBSH Board of Directors. Wong is vice-chairman of DBS Bank , chairman of DBS Hong Kong, and a member of the DBS Group Holdings Management Committee.

He oversees the Bank's wholesale banking businesses which include treasury and markets, investment and corporate banking, private banking, DBS Vickers Securities, and DBS Asset Management.

Wong joined DBS in March 1999 as head of its treasury and markets operations. Under his leadership, DBS expanded the scale and scope of its finanical markets activities, and consolidated its position as a leading market maker in regional currency and interest rate products. In recent years, the Bank's treasury and markets team has also moved rapidly to structure complex interest rate, foreign exchange, equity and credit derivatives to meet customer needs for hedging and for higher yields.

Last year, Wong's responsibilities were enlarged to cover DBS' Hong Kong and Greater China businesses. In that capacity, he oversaw the integration of DBSH's three banking operations in Hong Kong, leading to its legal merger and rebranding in July this year.

Wong was appointed a director of DBS Bank in December 2002.

Before joining DBS, he had more than 30 years of working experience with several international banks including National Westminster Bank, where he was its chief executive in Hong Kong and regional managing director for Asia Pacific, JP Morgan, where he held senior positions in Hong Kong and London; and Citibank.

Wong was active in public service when he was based in Hong Kong. He was chairman of the Hong Kong Futures Exchange from 1995-98, chairman of the Arbitration Panel from 1995-99, member of the Financial Services Advisory Committee of Hong Kong Trade Development Council from 1996-99, member of the Foreign Exchange and Money Market Practices Committee of Hong Kong Association of Banks from 1992-99, and member of the Finance Committee of Hong Kong Housing Authority from 1998-99. He also served as a Justice of Peace from June 1997 to February 1999.

For his services to Hong Kong, he was conferred an OBE (Order of the British Empire) on the Queen's birthday list in 1997.

Wong is also a director of China Mobile (HK) Ltd.

DBSH Board of Directors now comprises 14 members, including two executive directors and six non-Singaporeans. They are:

• Mr S Dhanabalan - Chairman
• Mr Jackson Tai - Vice Chairman and CEO
• Mr Bernard Chen Tien Lap
• Mr Fock Siew Wah
• Ms Gail D. Fosler
• Mr Kwa Chong Seng
• Mr Moses Lee Kim Poo
• Mr N R Narayana Murthy
• Mr Leung Chun Ying
• Mr Peter Ong
• Mr John Ross
• Mr Thean Lip Ping
• Mr Frank Wong Kwong Shing
• Dr Yeo Ning Hong

About DBS

Headquartered in Singapore, DBS Bank is one of the largest financial services groups in Asia. The largest bank in Singapore and the fourth biggest banking group in Hong Kong as measured by assets, DBS has dominant positions in consumer banking, treasury and markets, securities brokerage, equity and debt fund raising. Beyond the anchor markets of Singapore and Hong Kong, DBS serves corporate, institutional and retail customers through its operations in Thailand, The Philippines, and Indonesia. In China, the bank has branches and representative offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Fuzhou and Tianjin. The Bank's credit ratings are among 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.