Singapore's biggest bank beat estimates as wealth-management fees and trading income offset margin pressure from lower interest rates.
DBS Group raised its full-year guidance after second-quarter net profit climbed 9% to a record S$3.08 billion, exceeding the S$2.88 billion mean estimate from three analysts tracked by LSEG. The Singapore lender said strong wealth-management fees, treasury sales and trading income, along with loan and deposit growth, helped counter a decline in net interest margin to 1.87% from 2.05% a year earlier. CEO Tan Su Shan said the first-half performance was anchored by the bank's wealth management franchise, with assets under management in that division surpassing S$500 billion for the first time. DBS raised its 2026 outlook, now expecting total income to exceed 2025 levels and group net interest income to close the gap to 2025 levels, while also lifting its commercial-book non-interest income growth forecast to the mid-teens. The bank expects interest rates to remain at current levels, deposit growth in the high-single-digit range, and its cost-income ratio in the low-40% range.