Singapore banks' wealth management income grows 39%

All three banks registered absolute growth in 9M17.

DBS Equity Research reports that the wealth management income of Singapore banks has grown exponentially in the last seven years, from a small fraction to nearly one-third of total fee and commission income for DBS and OCBC.

Despite the different focus area of the three banks (DBS, OCBC, and UOB), they all did well in their respective wealth management businesses, registering growth of 48% (OCBC, including Barclays’ portfolio), 38% (UOB) and 33% (DBS) respectively on a 9M17 vs 9M16 basis.

Here’s more from DBS Equity Research:

The strong growth registered across the banks has been largely attributed to the banks’ consumer customer franchise network, relationships with SME business owners, as well as bancassurance products.

OCBC’s subsidiary, Great Eastern Holdings (GEH) plays an important role in providing a complete range of wealth management offering from within its suite of products. High-profile acquisitions for wealth and investment management businesses have also contributed to growth as exemplified by OCBC with its acquisition of the wealth and investment management business of Barclays PLC in Singapore and Hong Kong.