SINGAPORE: DBS Group Holdings, Southeast Asia's biggest lender, reported on Monday (Nov 11) a forecast-beating 15 per cent rise in quarterly profit, supported by higher wealth management fees.
The Singaporean bank's net profit came in at S$1.63 billion in the three months ended Sept. 30, compared with S$1.41 billion a year earlier and an average estimate of S$1.57 billion from five analysts, according to Refinitiv data.
AdvertisementAdvertisementNet interest income rose 8 per cent to S$2.46 billion in the quarter, while net interest margin came in at 1.90 per cent. The company expects its margin to fall by about 7 basis points in 2020.
Singapore's banks face a challenging outlook as interest rates soften and lending moderates after robust growth in recent years.
Last week, peer Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp posted its weakest quarterly profit this year after booking a one-off charge at its Indonesian banking unit.
DBS's wealth management fees jumped 22 per cent to S$357 million.
AdvertisementAdvertisementThe lender also said it made extra allowances of S$61 million given "ongoing political and economy uncertainty".
It added that the performance of its business in Hong Kong was "resilient", but reported a 13 per cent decline in net profit from the second quarter because of higher allowances and weaker trading income.
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