DBS' First Female CEO Faces Headwinds, Sees AI as Game Changer
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When Barings Bank collapsed in 1995, Tan Su Shan lost her job and was evicted after her Hong Kong landlord thought she might not be able to pay rent. Her long-term boyfriend broke up with her the same week. Two years later, she decided to take a pay cut to join another firm.
Tan credits the setbacks with helping to shape her 'inner strength' early in a banking career that will soon propel the 57-year-old Singaporean into the industry's top echelons. She is set to become the first female Chief Executive Officer of DBS Group Holdings Ltd. on March 28, taking over from Piyush Gupta, who has run Southeast Asia's largest lender for 15 years.
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Cars are significantly more expensive in Singapore because of the Certificate of Entitlement system, which requires buyers to bid for a limited permit just to own a vehicle. The COE alone, which was introduced to manage road congestion, can cost over 100,000 Singapore dollars, sometimes exceeding the price of the car itself. "For 100% spenders, or those who don't really like to save, it's also because they're spending what they haven't even received yet," Lim said, noting that buy now, pay later plans are also making it easier for Singaporeans to commit to future spending before they have the cash. According to Singapore's central bank, BNPL transactions reached around SG$440 million in 2021, a nearly fourfold increase from 2020. Research firm IDC expects BNPL payments in e-commerce transactions in Singapore to increase from 4% in 2023 to 6% by 2028. 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"This is the generation who grew up on a lot more marketing, so the urge to buy is a lot more, and they compare themselves to a lot more people," said He, who is currently a council member in Singapore's National Youth Council, a government body focused on youth development. 34-year-old Singaporean Joyce Ang echoed that she does not feel the same urgency as her parents did when it came to saving. "I feel safe to spend, because I don't have a partner yet, and I still live with my parents, so I don't have a house to worry about. I'm not in need of money immediately," she added. Compared to her parents' generation, she believes the priorities of the younger generation have changed. "In my parents' time, they were saving to have children. But nowadays not every one of us wants kids… so we don't have to actually scrimp and save so much," said Ang, who has a take-home pay of around SG$3,800 ($2,949) per month. Singaporeans' take-home pay is lower than their full salary because of mandatory Central Provident Fund (CPF) contributions. Every month, a portion of their salary — up to 20% for employees under 55 — is automatically deducted for retirement, housing, and healthcare savings. While Singaporeans can only withdraw $5,000 or more from CPF savings once they hit 55, they can tap on these savings to pay for housing and some medical costs at any age. "It's not that difficult to save. I set aside some of my allowance for my parents so if I wanted to, I can just set aside another pool of money for savings," said Ang. "But I don't think I need to do that at this point in time," she chuckled.
