DBS gets branch licence in New Delhi
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Plans to scale up corporate and SME banking in India
SINGAPORE, April 3, 2005 - DBS Bank has received approval from the Reserve Bank of India for a new branch licence in New Delhi.
The New Delhi branch, expected to be opened by the third quarter of this year, will be DBS' second branch in India, the first branch being located in Mumbai.
Rajan Raju, DBS' Managing Director and Head of South and Southeast Asia, said: "We are pleased to receive another banking licence in India. New Delhi is the capital of India and a major commercial hub in a country that is growing rapidly.
"The new branch is in line with our plan to grow organically in India. In the last year, DBS has committed more resources to expanding our franchise in India. We have hired new talents, injected more capital, and expanded the range of products and services for our customers."
DBS committed an additional US$105 million in its operations in India last year, bringing total capital invested in the country to US$122 million. The new funds helped to speed up asset growth by allowing the Bank to take on larger domestic exposures, as well as facilitate further expansion into wholesale banking, enterprise banking, treasury & markets including derivatives and transactional banking services such as cash management, trade and custody operations.
DBS will also move into investment banking services, including helping Indian companies break into overseas markets.
Mr Raju also noted that DBS' inroads into India's growing financial services market come at a time when bilateral ties between Singapore and India look to be firming with the ongoing Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) negotiations.
DBS first established its presence in India with a representative office in Mumbai in 1994. The following year, this was upgraded to a branch. Last year, the Bank hired Pranam Wahi, who has more than two decades of banking experience with foreign banks, to become its Chief Executive Officer for India.
Mr Wahi said: "We look forward to opening a new branch in New Delhi and replicating the range of products and services we have in our Mumbai branch to serve our customers in the northern part of India.
"We are close to hiring a banker with extensive corporate banking experience to head our New Delhi branch. His brief will be to help me fast track our growth in corporate and SME banking in India."
The New Delhi branch is expected to begin operations with about 20 staff with back-office support provided by the Mumbai branch. The total head-count for DBS India, now at 62, is likely to cross 120 by the end of the year, said Mr Wahi.
He explained that the plan will be for the New Delhi branch to service corporate, institutional and SME clients in cities near New Delhi such as Ludhiana and Chandigarh.
DBS India leverages off the DBS Group capabilities in Singapore and Hong Kong and closely coordinates its business development and product delivery with other DBS branches in the region.
Mr Wahi added: "Given our niche position in Asia, we will also focus on clients from the Far East who are establishing businesses in India, and Indian clients wishing to expand their operations into the Far East and China."
Last year, DBS was ranked the number two bookrunner for India syndicated loans by Thomson Financial after raising more than US$440 million in over 13 issues.
About DBS
Headquartered in Singapore, DBS is one of the largest financial services groups in Asia. The largest bank in Singapore and the fifth largest banking group in Hong Kong as measured by assets, DBS has dominant positions in consumer banking, treasury and markets, asset management, 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, Malaysia, Indonesia, India and The Philippines. In China, the bank has branches and representative offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Fuzhou, Tianjin and Dongguan. 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.
About DBS in India
Our presence in India dates back to 1994 when DBS Bank opened a representative office in Mumbai, which was upgraded to a full branch in March 1995. A second branch licence was granted in 2005 for New Delhi. From Mumbai and New Delhi, DBS services corporate and institutional clients from all the major cities in India through its advisory relationship team.
As one of Asia's largest financial services groups, DBS has the resources, expertise and experience to provide a full range of corporate and investment banking services to large corporations, financial institutions as well as SMEs in India.
Working closely with DBS' headquarters in Singapore, the Bank offers advisory services, trade finance, funding, transactional services and a whole range of treasury solutions.
DBS India has extensive experience in providing innovative financial solutions to a number of blue-chip companies in India. A key player in the Asian capital markets, DBS is a well-recognised name in corporate banking, loan syndication and fund-raising.
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