How do I start an investment through digiPortfolio?

Simply login to DBS digibank and access the ‘digiPortfolio’ tab in the top navigation bar.

  1. Select the portfolio you wish to invest in.
  2. Indicate your preferred risk level and funding account, funding currency and amount.
  3. Then confirm your decision after checking that your order details are correct.

You will need a DBS Wealth Management Account (WMA) to invest and must have completed a Customer Knowledge Assessment questionnaire. Both are available via DBS digibank.

Contact me To open a WMA for trading.

How To Get Started

For DBS Treasures clients without a DBS digibank User ID and PIN

Get started To open a DBS digibank account

Not a DBS Private Bank client?

Sign up To gain access to DBS digibank
Where can I obtain a copy of the respective portfolio information?

Details of the underlying funds in each portfolio are available in the Portfolio Details page in DBS digibank. You will be able to view the fund prospectuses and fact sheets. In addition, there are short commentaries from the DBS Investment Team on the reasons for including each fund in the portfolio.

When will fees be debited from my account?

Management fees are debited once a year. In the event that you close your portfolio, the applicable fees will be debited prior to closure.

How can I check my holdings?

Simply log in to DBS digibank via internet banking to view details of your digiPortfolio and holdings.

Can I change my investment amount?

Yes you can. You only need to maintain the minimum investment sum for your selected digiPortfolio. (ie Global Portfolio = SGD/USD 1,000 and Global Portfolio Plus = SGD/USD 10,000)

It is also possible to withdraw your investment sum partially or fully. This may involve selling some/all of your holdings in the portfolio. The selling process will take several days.

How do I close my digiPortfolio?

After logging into DBS digibank, select the digiPortfolio you wish to close and submit your closure request. If you have multiple digiPortfolios you will need to repeat this process for each one. The holdings in the selected digiPortfolio will be sold with the proceeds returned to your DBS Wealth Management Account. This selling process will take several days.

Can I still hold selected funds after the closure of my digiPortfolio?

No, once the closure request is submitted all the holdings in the digiPortfolio will be sold and the proceeds returned to your DBS Wealth Management Account. If you wish to remain invested in specific funds, you will need to purchase them individually via the DBS Online Funds Investment platform in DBS digibank.

What will happen if there is insufficient money in my DBS Wealth Management Account?

You will need to top up your DBS Wealth Management Account by transferring in monies from your Savings or Current Account via DBS digibank instantly.

Why can’t I purchase a digiPortfolio?

You will need the following to invest in a digiPortfolio:

Why does it say that I “do not have an eligible account in this currency”?
  • You will need a Wealth Management Account (WMA) in order to manage your investments with ease.
    Contact me To open a WMA for trading.
  • For funds-based digiPortfolios, you will need to transfer funds into WMA. Monies in your Savings/Current/Multi-Currency Account(s) cannot be access for buying a digiPortfolio.
  • For ETF-based digiPortfolios, you will need the following funding accounts, which can be opened instantly online. Please note that only individual accounts are eligible.
  • If you are intending to buy a USD digiPortfolio you will need to already have USD in your funding account. Otherwise, you can transfer USD from your Multi-Currency Account (MCA) or do a FX transaction into your WMA.

digiPortfolio Management Fee Calculation

Calculation of Management Fees:

Portfolio TypeGlobal Portfolio (0.75% p.a.)Global Portfolio Plus (0.75% - 0.85% p.a.)
Management Fee$7.50 a year for each $1,000$85 a year
(0.85% for the first $10,000)

$320 a year
(0.80% for the next $40,000)

0.75% for portfolios more than $50,000
(as per portfolio value)
How much do I have to pay to invest in digiPortfolio?

There is only one fee.

Based on the portfolio value, the annual management fee is at 0.75% p.a. for Global Portfolio and 0.75% - 0.85% p.a. for Global Portfolio Plus. (no sales charge, platform fee, switching fee, withdrawal fee or closure fee)

This management fee goes towards the research, investment strategy, market monitoring and rebalancing of the digiPortfolio and is charged once a year, or at the time of portfolio closure.

This portfolio management fee does not include the fund management fee charged by the underlying funds, which is already captured in the fund’s total expense ratio. The underlying funds are selected by our Investment Team for their strong track record and potential to outperform the market net of fund management fees.

What is the investment strategy of digiPortfolio?

digiPortfolio’s objective is to achieve a return befitting the respective mandate over an investment cycle of 3 – 5 years while managing the price fluctuation (risk) because of the market.

To achieve this, our strategy is to invest in a portfolio of fixed income (bonds) funds and equity funds. Bonds provide steady income streams and equities provide capital growth. For any specific mandate, we will adjust the weights in either bonds or equities depending on our view on the market. We form this view together with our Chief Investment Officer (CIO) team – a dedicated team of analysts that form macro strategy. For example, in the Comfy Cruisin’ Portfolio that is initially 45% invested in bonds funds, 50% in equities funds and 5% in cash, we would increase the weight in equities and decrease the weight in bonds if we believed that equities would outperform bonds over a certain period of time. Our adjustments are calibrated and not excessive.

Funds are an efficient means to gain access to the markets.

How are risks managed in the digiPortfolio?

The DBS Investment Team undertakes prudent risk management to guard against excessive risk in the portfolios. Our portfolio specialists consider acceptable price fluctuations to achieve certain returns.

Risk management also mitigates downside risks if our projections do not work out as we may have intended. For example, if we took an outsized investment in equities and it corrected heavily, it would cause undue stress to the portfolio. Having risk management standards and practices in place provides safeguards in the decision-making process.

How long should I remain invested in a digiPortfolio?

We believe that one should take a long-term view when investing to enjoy the benefit of compounded returns. Staying focused on long term targets will help investors overcome the anxieties caused by short term market volatility. A good guide is an investment cycle of 5 years.

Compounding generates additional gains by staying invested. In the illustration below, based on an initial investment amount of $10,000, a 6% annual return reaps $3,000 over 5 years if the investor withdraws the gains every year. If the investor did not withdraw the gains and stayed fully invested, the profit after 5 years would be $3,382 instead or $382 more.

Year12345Cumulative
Simple$10,600$11,200$11,800$12,400$13,000$3,000
Compound$10,600$11,236$11,910$12,625$13,382$3,382

Short term investing requires good skill and timing to achieve success. However, this is difficult to execute during periods of volatility. The chart below is the MSCI World Index from 2013 to 2017. Suppose an investor started investing in 2013, he would have made some profit before meeting the rough patch in 2015. He may then decide to sell his investments to avoid further volatility. He may even wait a while before returning to the market. This may have meant missing out on the rally that proceeded in 2017. If he had stayed fully invested during the whole period, he could have benefited from the full 58% gain.

How often is digiPortfolio rebalanced?

To make the portfolio effective, the portfolios are reviewed quarterly and rebalanced when necessary.

Regular rebalancing enables the portfolios to remain resilient no matter how the market moves.

How is digiPortfolio different from Robo-Advisors?

Many robo-advisors in Singapore are stand-alone fintech companies with limited market capital, or part of the brokerage platforms of banks, which are separate from the full suite of banking products and services.

digiPortfolio is created and delivered by the Safest Bank in Asia and Best Digital Bank Globally. View Awards & Accolades.

DBS Bank also enjoys the highest credit ratings from the three top credit rating agencies in the world. digiPortfolio’s investment process is completely integrated into the bank’s secure systems so you have peace of mind knowing you are not being redirected to a third-party platform to transact. This also affords greater convenience as your internet banking login details are the only credentials needed to start investing

What is a Robo-Advisor?

Robo-advisors are digital platforms driven by algorithms that provide automated financial planning services with little or no human supervision. A typical robo-advisor collects information from clients through an online survey, and then uses the data to offer advice and/or automatically invest client assets.

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