Singapore’s DBS Group is seeing rising interest from wealthy clients in Europe and the US seeking investment, wealth management and family office options in Asia as they look to protect portfolios against prolonged market volatility, Bloomberg reported, citing remarks by Joseph Poon, the bank’s head of private banking.
Some of these clients are looking to invest in businesses in the region, while others are exploring the establishment of a secondary family office in Asia, Poon said at the Financial Times’ wealth management conference in Singapore, according to the report.
The trend points to how global wealthy families are increasingly viewing Asia not only as a growth market but also as a jurisdiction for diversification, capital preservation and long-term wealth structuring amid geopolitical tensions, higher energy costs and volatile cross-border capital flows.
“The wealthy clients who are coming to the region want absolute stability,” Poon said in a separate interview cited by Bloomberg. He added that volatility is “now a feature, not a bug.”
The comments also reinforce Singapore’s position as a regional wealth hub at a time when private banks are competing to attract ultra-high-net-worth clients and family offices. B
DBS and its local rivals brought in a combined S$77 billion ($61 billion) in net new wealth money last year, as lenders leaned more heavily on their wealth businesses to support growth while loan margins came under pressure.
The inflows may have strengthened further following the outbreak of the US-Iran war this year, which has unsettled global markets and prompted wealthy families across Asia to reassess how and where they allocate capital.
Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp.’s private bank has likewise anchored its strategy on Singapore’s stability and regulatory strength, Bloomberg reported, citing a statement from Ranjit Khanna, its head of Middle East, Global South Asia and International.
DBS is also expanding its private banking workforce, with relationship manager headcount rising in line with demand, though Poon did not disclose recruitment targets, according to Bloomberg.