Tan Su Shan has been DBS chief executive for just about 18 months, but listening to her at the Singapore Press Club Eminent Speaker Series on Sept 11, I was struck by how comfortably she appears to have settled into one of Singapore’s most important corporate positions.
Speaking on “DBS: Banking on Asia’s Future”, followed by a fireside chat moderated by The Business Times associate editor Lee Su Shyan, Su Shan came across as confident, articulate, quick-witted and refreshingly candid.
She is an engaging speaker because she does not sound as though every answer has travelled through several layers of corporate approval. She listens carefully, responds quickly and often finds a humorous way of making her point.
The best example came when she was asked whether politics might be her next destination.
“I’m too old,” the 57-year-old shot back, drawing immediate laughter.
It was a typically sharp response – brief, unexpected and effective. Throughout the session, she seemed comfortable moving from banking and geopolitics to public policy without losing that conversational quality.
Even when discussing complicated issues such as capital markets, regional fragmentation and artificial intelligence, she had a knack for making them understandable rather than drowning the audience in banking jargon. She spoke with the audience rather than at them.
On Singapore, Su Shan called for greater diversity of talent from the public and private sectors to elevate policy debate. She also argued that Singapore must become more comfortable with taking risks – and accepting that failure is sometimes necessary to learn and progress.
Her confidence was equally apparent when discussing DBS.
Rather than trying to become another Citi or HSBC, Su Shan wants DBS to be an “Asian bank for Asians”, tapping the region’s opportunities in wealth management, trade and capital markets.
Singapore and Hong Kong will remain its two main financial hubs, while DBS is targeting S$1 trillion in assets under management by 2030.
That ambition comes after a strong start to Su Shan’s tenure following her succession of long-serving CEO Piyush Gupta in March 2025.
DBS reported second-quarter net profit of S$3.08 billion, up 9 per cent year on year, while quarterly total income crossed S$6 billion for the first time. Assets under management have also exceeded S$500 billion.
Su Shan is simultaneously pushing artificial intelligence deeper into the organisation, positioning technology alongside wealth management as an important engine of future growth.
Taking over from someone who led DBS for 16 years was always going to invite comparisons. But watching Su Shan on stage, there was little sense of a CEO operating in her predecessor’s shadow.
She has a distinctly different style – spontaneous, personable and quick with a comeback, yet authoritative when the subject turns serious.
And, with DBS continuing to produce strong numbers, she has plenty to smile about.
santosh@sph.com.sg
