From Ambition to
Building a Sustainable Advantage

ActionDBS Group Holdings Ltd
Sustainability Report 2023

CEO Message

Contents

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

CEO Message
4

CEO message

Highlights
6

Highlights

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

7

Our sustainability strategy

8

Governance of sustainability

10

Stakeholder engagement

12

Material ESG factors

13

Human rights

Additional Disclosures

Pillar 1

Pillar 3

Responsible Banking

Impact Beyond Banking

16

Responsible financing

82

DBS Foundation

37

Sustainable living

87

Employee volunteerism

40

Financial inclusion

92

Towards Zero Food Waste

Pillar 2

Responsible
Business Practices
46

Approach

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Enhancing employee engagement
and culture

49

Developing our people

52

Driving diversity, equity and inclusion

59

Managing our environmental footprint

64

Sustainable procurement

67

Technology resilience(including cyber security)

70

Data governance74

Preventing financial crime

77

Fair dealing

79

Responsible tax management

CONTENTS

Additional Disclosures
94

Summary of performance and targets

96

10 Principles of UN Global Compact

97

GRI Content Index

102 SASB Standards
104 Mapping to TCFD recommendations
105 	Methodology for climate scenario
analysis modelling
106 Selected ESG-related awards, indices and ratings
107 Commitments and memberships
109 	Independent limited assurance reporton sustainability information

From Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Introduction
About us

About this report

Coverage

DBS is a leading financial services group in Asia with apresence in 19 markets. Headquartered and listed in
Singapore, DBS is in the three key Asian axes of growth:Greater China, Southeast Asia and South Asia. The bank’s“AA-” and “Aa1” credit ratings are also among the highest in
the world.

This Sustainability Report is approved by the Board andprepared in accordance with, and taking reference to, thefollowing regulations, standards, and guidelines:

This report covers the environmental, social, andgovernance (ESG) principles, initiatives and performanceof our operations across our core markets. It contains
information for the financial year 1 January to 31 December
2023, unless otherwise stated. In 2023, DBS completed theacquisition of Citigroup Inc.’s consumer banking businessin Taiwan (Citi Consumer Taiwan). The scope of this report
includes Citi Consumer Taiwan for employee-relateddata, and selected initiatives, but excludes operational
environmental data as integration of reporting systems isstill underway. Our sustainability reporting processes are
subjected to internal review, with selected indicators also
subjected to external assurance as detailed on pages 109
to 110. The report is to be read in conjunction with theAnnual Report 2023 and other sustainability-related
disclosures on our website.

Recognised for its global leadership, DBS has been named“World’s Best Bank” by Global Finance, “World’s BestBank” by Euromoney and “Global Bank of the Year” by The
Banker. The bank is at the forefront of leveraging digitaltechnology to shape the future of banking and has been
named “World’s Best Digital Bank” by Euromoney and theworld’s “Most Innovative in Digital Banking” by The Banker.
In addition, DBS has been accorded the “Safest Bank in Asia”
award by Global Finance for 15 consecutive years from 2009
to 2023.

• S
 ingapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited (SGX-ST)
Listing Rules 711A and 711B on Sustainability Report, andPractice Note 7.6 Sustainability Reporting Guide (updated
January 2022)• The Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures(TCFD) recommendations by the Financial Stability Board(updated October 2021)• The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards 2021
(updated July 2021)• The Financial Institutions Climate-related Disclosure
Document under the Monetary Authority of Singapore(MAS)-convened Green Finance Industry Taskforce(published May 2021)• The Guidelines for Climate Target Setting for Banks by the
UN Environment Programme – Finance Initiative (issued
April 2021)• The Guidelines on Responsible Financing issued in
October 2015 by the Association of Banks in Singapore(revised June 2018)• The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB)
standards based on the three SICS industries within the
Financials sector most aligned with our mix of businesses:
Commercial Banks (FN-CB), Consumer Finance (FN-CF),and Mortgage Finance (FN-MF)

Feedback
We welcome feedback on this report and any aspect of oursustainability performance. Please address all feedback to
DBS Group Sustainability at sustainability@dbs.com.

We are a signatory to the United Nations (UN) Global
Compact and are committed to the 10 Principles.

From Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

CEO Message“We materially expanded our client engagement with large corporate
customers on climate to deliver on the bold commitments we made in
2022... Apart from offering advisory services related to our clients’ net zerotransition journeys, we translated this engagement into finance solutions.
Our sustainable financing (for loans and trade finance) commitments, netof repayments, was around SGD 70 billion as of December.”Piyush Gupta, CEO DBS Group Holdings

in 2023 were significantly higher than recent averages. The
number of people directly impacted by these calamities
reached new highs, with the poor disproportionately
affected, worsening social inequalities.

2023 was a year of many struggles but also accomplishments,
and it underscored how the virtues of hard work andperseverance give rise to hope.

rate than in 2022. And the outlook for Southeast Asian
economies improved, as the electronics export cycle
bottomed out and travel and tourism continued to recover.

Challenges were abundant. The war between Russia andUkraine raged on, additional armed conflicts broke out,
most notably between Israel and Hamas, and tensions
between the superpowers remained high. All thesecomplicated geopolitics further and contributed toeconomic headwinds. While inflation eased after global
central banks aggressively hiked rates, it persisted atelevated levels. Consequently, both consumers andbusinesses continued to face significant strain.

On the climate front, we witnessed an unprecedented
number of new records this past year. June to December
were the warmest months on record. Ocean temperatures
were the hottest ever measured. All of this has been
exacerbated by the start of El Niño, a natural climate shiftthat tends to raise global temperatures. But the science isclear, the trajectory of global warming can only be changed
if we reduce historically high atmospheric carbon dioxide
concentrations at speed and scale.

Despite this, a hard landing of the global economy was
avoided. In particular, most of Asia’s economies remainedrobust. China and India, the two most populous economiesof the world, both ended the year with a higher growth

Tragically, the impacts from climate change on the economy
and society are becoming ever more evident. Studies
have shown that insured and uninsured economic losses
resulting from extreme climate-related weather conditions

Encouragingly, governments and regulators around the world
have implemented an increasing number of meaningfulpolicies that support the transition to net zero, which is
being complemented by significant efforts of the private
sector to transform global industries and supply chains.
Globally, investments in clean energy overtook spending on
fossil fuel at a ratio of 1.7:1, according to the International
Energy Agency. Just five years ago, this ratio stood at 1:1.
Additionally, 118 countries pledged at the COP28 climate
summit to triple the world’s renewable energy capacity
by 2030. The electrification of transport has greatly
accelerated across markets, and battery production has
been scaling up. Nearer to home, ASEAN ramped up its
efforts to decarbonise and aims to create green corridors.
China’s decarbonisation efforts have been astounding. For
example, in 2023 it installed over half of the world’s total
renewable power generation capacity, grew to become theworld’s largest electric vehicle market and exporter, andplanted more trees than any other country in the world.

From ambition to action
Against this backdrop, we further refined our approach andleveraged the increased capacity we had built in previous
years to double down on various strategic initiatives.
Our sustainability strategy remains centred aroundembedding environmental and social considerations into thefabric of our business via three pillars: (1) Responsible Banking
that seeks to empower our clients to being more sustainable
and to promote greater access to essential financial
services, (2) Responsible Business Practices that focuseson how we conduct ourselves as an organisation, and (3)Impact Beyond Banking that supports social enterprises andcommunity causes, as well as employee volunteerism.
In our Responsible Banking pillar, we materiallyexpanded our client engagement with large corporate
customers on climate to deliver on the bold commitments
we made in 2022 when we published ‘Our Path to Net Zero
– Supporting Asia’s Transition to a Low Carbon Economy’.
Apart from offering advisory services related to our clients’net zero transition journeys, we translated this engagement
into finance solutions. Our sustainable financing
commitments (for loans and trade finance), net of payments,
From Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS“We committed up to SGD 1 billion over the next 10 years to improve lives
and livelihoods of the low-income and underprivileged, and foster a more
inclusive society”

totalling SGD 665 million to micro and small businesses
to support their working capital needs. Furthermore, wedeveloped a personal finance guidance, the DBS Financial
Planning Portal, to achieve holistic financial wellness acrossthe key life stages.

Foundation also committed another SGD 5.6 million
to support 11 new programmes to build future-ready skills
and food security among vulnerable segments through its
Community Impact Chapter.

Piyush Gupta, CEO DBS Group Holdings

In our Responsible Business Practices pillar, weestablished the Employee Experience Council to drive
four key employee journeys, namely employee wellbeing, workload, assimilation of new hires and rewards& recognition. We also launched our flagship Women
Leadership Programme which is specifically designed tobuild, support, and sustain a robust community of senior
women leaders and strengthen our pipeline for seniorleadership in the bank. In our procurement, we uplifted our
Sustainable Sourcing Principles to encourage suppliers to
adopt a socially and environmentally restorative approachin supply of products and services. Furthermore, we
implemented a cloud-based data management platform to
improve the end-to-end environmental data management.
This will enable us to further sharpen our strategy focusedon reducing the environmental footprint of our own
operations. Additionally, we materially expanded oursustainability learning campus to deepen knowledge ofand empower employees to support our agenda andstrategic initiatives. As one example, we trained over 1,800
relationship managers and credit risk managers to empower
them with necessary climate-related knowledge.

Recognising our role in society
and pursuing our Visionstood at around SGD 70 billion as of December, up from
SGD 51 billion in the previous year. We also facilitated close
to SGD 18 billion of ESG bond issuances in 2023.
We supported global efforts related to the managed andearly phase out of coal in Asia. Asia has around 5,000
operational coal power plants. It will be critical to shutthem down well ahead of the end of their operating lives tomeet the goals of the Paris Agreement. This endeavour isvery complex, especially given the socio-economic context
in Asia and the imperative to accomplish this in a justmanner. To this end, we have supported and collaborated
in initiatives with research and advocacy efforts to foster an
ecosystem approach. For example, we co-led work related
to the public consultation and final report of the Glasgow
Financial Alliance for Net Zero (‘GFANZ’) on ‘Financing theManaged Phaseout of Coal-Fired Power Plants in Asia
Pacific’. Furthermore, we have acted as financial advisor
to the Indonesian Investment Authority (‘INA’) related tosuch transactions. During COP28, INA and various partners
signed a framework agreement and conditionally agreed toshorten the operating life of Cirebon-1, a 660 MW coal-fired
power plant located on Java, by around seven years.
In addition to our focus on large corporates, we doubled
down on our efforts to help SMEs in their sustainability
efforts. Last year, we established several strategic
partnerships with industry leaders to provide morecomprehensive solutions to SMEs. One example is our new

collaboration with H&M Group, which seeks to accelerate
the adoption of green initiatives across the fashion supply
chain. In Hong Kong, we partnered CLP Power to support
SMEs’ low-carbon transition. Additionally, we signed
partnerships with a number of solutions providers such as
Keppel Corp, Schneider Electric and Reset Carbon, among
others. Furthermore, we engaged over 1,000 SMEs throughvarious sustainability training courses and programmes todevelop their capability and capacity in the field.
Next to all these efforts on client engagement, we also further
strengthened our ESG risk management capabilities. We
enhanced relevant processes and our ESG data architecture,created new analytical tools, and formed a new management
position, the Head of ESG Credit Risk.
In our Consumer Banking Group, we continued our efforts
to provide customers with financial planning and an array ofinvestment and financing solutions aimed at helping themto live more sustainably. For example, we enhanced andexpanded our offerings on LiveBetter, our one-stop digitalsustainability platform, which we had launched in 2021.
It is now available in Singapore, Hong Kong and Indonesia.
To date, more than SGD 21 million has been invested throughInvest Better in green funds and ETFs, and over SGD 2 million
donated through Give Better for environmental and social causes.
Financial inclusion, banking the under-banked and nurturing
healthy financial planning, has always been a core focus areafor us. Last year, we approved over 4,400 unsecured loans

Finally, in our Impact Beyond Banking pillar, we
committed up to SGD 1 billion over the next 10 years
to improve lives and livelihoods of the low-income andunderprivileged, and foster a more inclusive society. In
addition, our workforce committed to over 1.5 million
volunteer hours over the next decade to give back to society.
In 2023, the DBS Foundation awarded SGD 3.7 million in
grant funding to 24 SMEs and social enterprises across theregion through its Business for Impact Chapter. The DBS

Last year, DBS marked our 55th anniversary. With roots as
the Development Bank of Singapore, established with theexpress intent to help Singapore’s industrialisation, the ideaof being sustainable, being relevant to society, doing realthings for real people, and therefore having a purpose, hasbeen deeply rooted in our DNA.
While we are a different kind of bank today, we have always
maintained our strong sense of purpose, and developed our
Vision to be the Best Bank for a Better World. This means
taking action now to create a more prosperous, inclusive
and sustainable future for generations to come.
The path ahead is formidable and there is still much to be
done. I am grateful for the hard work and perseveranceof DBS employees, as well as our clients and partners, on
this journey. I am confident that our collective efforts anddedication will allow us to accelerate action at scale andspeed, to support a future in Asia which is greener, and just.

Piyush Gupta
CEO
DBS Group Holdings

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Highlights
Summary of performanceagainst our climate targets
Emission reduction targets
On trackPower

On track

Automotive

On track

Real Estate

On track

Oil & Gas

On track

Aviation

Almost on track

Steel

Not on track

Shipping

01

02

03

Committed

Established

Committed up to

Responsible
Banking

On track

Food & Agribusiness

On track

Chemicals

The summary of performance against our climate targets
tracks the annual variance against the science-informed
decarbonisation pathways we have chosen to guide us
towards our interim 2030 targets and net zero 2050 targets
for each of our priority sectors. We have observed good
progress in five out of seven sectors, and they track wellagainst the relevant science-informed decarbonisation
pathways. However, we recognise that in very hard-to-abate
sectors, such as Steel (almost on track) and Shipping (noton track), there are dependencies and structural challenges
that require long-term changes. Addressing these will often
need broader ecosystem partnerships across the public andprivate sectors. We remain committed to working with ourclients and fostering partnerships to enable an economywide transition to net zero that is orderly and just.
Read more about our sustainability achievements and initiatives in thefollowing chapters of our Sustainability Report.

Impact Beyond
Banking

SGD 70 billion

Employee Experience Council

SGD 1 billion

in sustainable financing, net of repayments
and facilitated SGD 18 billion in ESG
bond issuances as an active bookrunnerto drive better employee journeys in DBS

over 10 years to improve lives andlivelihoods of the low-income andunderprivileged

EstablishedLaunchedAwardedCommitted

to build, support, and sustain ourcommunity of senior women leadersin grant funding throughDBS Foundation Businessfor Impact Grant Award

to programmes on futureready skills and food security
for vulnerable segments

Approved

Enhanced

Deliveredin Singapore, totalling SGD 665 million, as partof our wider regional support for the working
capital needs of micro and small businesses in Asia

to further build bank-wide
sustainability capabilities

reaching >150,000 beneficiaries

Achieved

SubsidisedPowerful ecosystem partnerships

Data coverage targets

Responsible
Business Practices

with H&M Group and CLP Power, among others,
to better service our customers’ sustainability needs> 4,400 unsecured loans

Facilitated> SGD 21 million
investments in green funds andETFs through LiveBetter platform
since November 2021

Women Leadership
Programme

Sustainability
Learning Campus

Green Mark Platinumfor > 80%of manned retailbranches in Singapore

SGD 3.7 million

SGD 5.6 million> 200,000 employee
volunteering hours

4.67 million meals
through DBS PayLah! weekly hawker
meal initiative

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Approach
Our sustainability strategy
Guided by our vision to be the “Best Bank for a Better World”, DBS seeks to create long-term value for stakeholders ina sustainable way. We do this by using our resources to build competitive advantages that unlock new business opportunities
for sustainable value creation.
Our Vison

Best Bank for a Better World
Environmental and social factors are woven into the fabric of our business across three pillars
to create sustainable outcomes for our stakeholders.

01

Responsible
Banking

We are supporting our clients tobe more sustainable and transition
towards lower-carbon businessmodels, integrating sustainability into
financing solutions and investment
opportunities, and democratisingbanking services to meet ourcustomers’ specific needs.

02

Responsible
Business
Practices

We believe in doing the right thingby our people and embedding
environmental and societal factors
in our business operations.

03

ImpactBeyondBanking

We seek to be a force for good bychampioning businesses for impact
and uplifting vulnerable communities
to catalyse positive environmental
and social impact.

We see sustainability as an active value driver that offers new opportunities, builds resilience against ESG risks andstrengthens trust with our stakeholders. Across the three pillars of our sustainability strategy, we have set metrics andtargets, and developed initiatives to drive sustainable outcomes. We report on our approach and performance against
our material ESG factors in the following chapters of this report.

Supporting sustainable development
As a member of the United Nations Global Compact, wehave a role to play in promoting sustainable development.
We are committed to drive progress towards achieving thesustainable development goals (SDGs). All 17 interrelated
goals represent an ambitious sustainability agenda by 2030.
We have chosen to focus on the following six SDGs which
we believe we can make the most meaningful contributions
to, taking into account the markets in which we operate.
Read more about how we are contributing to the SDGs in the chaptersthat follow.

From Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

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Governance of sustainability
Effective governance and board oversight is crucial toensure resilience and drive long-term value creation. At DBS,
the Board is collectively responsible for the long-term successof the bank and has ultimate responsibility of our sustainability
strategy and reporting. It provides constructive challenge
and strategic advice to management.

Board and Board Committees
In 2022, the Board established our Board Sustainability
Committee (BSC) to provide greater governance andoversight on our sustainability agenda, including our net
zero commitment, which is a strategic priority for the bank.
The BSC is chaired by DBS Group CEO Piyush Gupta. Its
members come from different business backgrounds andbring together complimentary skills and experience. The
BSC members who are also DBS Board members, include
Chng Kai Fong, Judy Lee, Tham Sai Choy and David Ho, who
was newly appointed to the bank’s Board of Directors in
April 2023. In addition to DBS Board members, the BSC
also comprises of a non-director member and sustainability
expert, Dr. Ben Caldecott, the founding Director of the
Oxford Sustainable Finance Group at the University of
Oxford Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment.
Read more about the profiles of our Board of Directors in our Annual Report.

In 2023, the BSC met quarterly and discussed several topics
related to sustainability, including, but not limited to:• G lobal themes relevant to DBS and our sustainability strategy.
• Sustainability-related developments within DBS.
• Climate risk considerations including physical and transition
risks, and enhancements to our ESG risk assessments.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking• C lient engagement on transition planning, as well as
green and sustainable financing solutions.
• DBS’ approach to disclosures, including adherence
to new sustainability-and climate-related reporting
standards and frameworks.
The Board receives regular updates on key sustainability
matters arising from these quarterly BSC meetings.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices“The Board has overall responsibility for the formulationof DBS’ sustainability strategy. The Board provides
oversight on DBS’ sustainability agenda and directs its
efforts in managing material ESG factors, guided by theobjective to create long-term value by managing ourbusiness in a balanced and responsible way. In 2023, theBoard Sustainability Committee (BSC) oversaw the updateof our material ESG factors, as well as the continued
progress to weave social and environmental factors
into the fabric of our business, with a greater focus on
climate-related matters.”
DBS Group Board of Directors

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Board of Directors

At DBS, we take an integrated approach to governance ofsustainability and climate-related risks and opportunities.
The Audit Committee (AC) and the Board Risk Management
Committee (BRMC) also have oversight responsibilities forsustainability-related activities. In 2023, the AC received regular
updates on sustainability-related disclosure requirements,
while the BRMC discussed and reviewed climate considerations
as part of the wider risk management processes.

Board statement on sustainability

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Sustainability governance structure

Board

Highlights

Board
Sustainability Committee

Audit
Committee(oversees progress against our sustainability
strategy and climate commitment)

Board Risk
Management Committee(oversees climate-related
risk management)(oversees disclosure matters)

Group Sustainability Council(chaired by the Group Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO))
Council members represented by senior management across:

Project Net Zero
(Sponsored by the Group Head of Institutional Banking,Group CRO and Group CSO)

Institutional
Banking

Management

CEO Message

Consumer
Banking

Technology &Operations

Human
Resource

TreasuryMarkets

Risk
Management

Group
Strategic Marketing Comms./ DBS
Foundation

Internal Audit

Net zerostrategy

ESG riskassessment policies
and processes

Climate data
and technology

Financed emission
assessment
approach

Climate scenario
analysis model
development

Climate-related
training

Group
Planning

Standing invitation extended to senior representatives across:

Legal & Compliance

The Project Net Zero steering committee oversees:

Strategic Planning

Local Sustainability Councils(China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, India and Indonesia)

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CEO Message

Highlights

Executive management
At the management level, the Group Sustainability Council(GSC) oversees the execution of sustainability initiatives
across the bank. The GSC is chaired by the Group CSO andcomprises of senior managers from various business andsupport units. In 2023, the GSC met quarterly.
Given the increasing regulatory and legal relevance of ESG
matters, Internal Audit and Legal & Compliance attend GSC
meetings as observers. This supports a more comprehensive
approach to risk management and regulatory compliance,and deeper ethical considerations as we navigate a dynamic
and complex sustainability landscape.
The GSC – through the Chief Sustainability Office –coordinates and collaborates sustainability efforts withthe five Local Sustainability Councils (LSCs) establishedin our core markets outside of Singapore (China, Hong
Kong, Taiwan, India and Indonesia). In addition to the GSC,
the LSCs serve as executive forums for discussions andoperational decision-making on sustainability matters.
In 2023, we established a cross-functional steering committee
called Project Net Zero, which drives the operationalisationof our climate agenda across our net zero commitment, risk
management and reporting. Sponsored by the Group Headof Institutional Banking, Group CRO and Group CSO, thesteering committee is responsible for the implementationof multiple workstreams that involve different business andsupport units across the bank. The Project Net Zero Steering
Committee provides quarterly updates to the BSC as one of
the key standing agenda items.
At the start of 2023, the bank established a new ESG Credit
Risk team under Risk Management Group along with a
new management position – Head of ESG Credit Risk – toprovide leadership and expertise to further strengthen our
Climate and ESG risk management capabilities.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Embedding sustainability into performance
management and remuneration

For senior leaders
To further our senior management understanding of thebusiness imperatives arising from sustainability risks andopportunities, and support the integration of ESG risks andopportunities into strategic decision making, we collaborated
with Cambridge University’s Institute for Sustainability
Leadership to conduct a full day senior leadershipworkshop. The interactive workshop included cases onsustainability best practices and challenging dilemmas,with an emphasis on solving real world problems.

Management targets cover key sustainability and climaterelated themes such as:

To further strengthen the governance of sustainability
at DBS, in 2023 we conducted a holistic review of oursustainability governance processes. As a result, we haverefined our approach including:• E stablishing an Environmental and Social IncidentManagement Guide to ensure timely and appropriate
response to any reports of environmental andsocial incidents.
• Establishing a Consumer Banking Governance Guide
for Sustainability Labelled Products and Services toensure that a robust governance framework and internal

CONTENTS

we identified three key sustainability learning priorities
and enhanced the DBS Sustainability Learning Campus,
considering different target audiences within the bank.

We use a balanced scorecard approach to measure how
successful we are in serving our key stakeholders andexecuting our long-term strategy. Sustainability andclimate-related targets are incorporated into our Group
Scorecard and cascaded across the relevant units’
scorecards, which are used to evaluate performance.
Progress made against these targets is then used todetermine the compensation for both our management andrelevant executing teams, which in turn drives the overallmanagement of sustainability performance across the bank.

• Governance, processes and reporting systems• Climate progress under Project Net Zero
• Sustainable, green and social products, solutions
and services• Financial inclusion, financial literacy and digital inclusion• Regenerative technology and spaces• Talent and people, including talent retention, diversity &inclusion and employee engagement• Impact beyond banking through DBS Foundation

Additional Disclosurescontrols are in place for products and services, to whicha sustainability label is attached.
• Uplifting our Sustainable Sourcing Principles (SSP)to further promote the principles of restorative
procurement amongst our suppliers.
Read more about “Our 2023 priorities”, “Corporate governance” and“Remuneration report” in the Annual Report.

Elevating sustainability knowledge and skills
Sustainability is a dynamic field and the sustainability context
within which we operate is constantly evolving. The Board
receives regular briefings on sustainability matters, includingfrom external sustainability experts. In addition, we ensurethat our Board and Board committees stay informed about
key developments and possess the knowledge and skills
to advise on a wide spectrum of sustainability and climaterelated risks and opportunities. Training on ESG matters isprovided for all new Board members.
To further embed sustainability into every aspect of ourbusiness and build the capacity of our people, in 2023

For all staff
To create greater understanding of the relevance ofsustainability for the bank across all employees, a suiteof sustainability-related training modules was launchedin April 2023. The modules cover a variety of sustainability
concepts, as well as communicating DBS’ sustainability
commitments and progress, and how everyone canparticipate in this journey.
Read more about our bank-wide learning programme in “Developing ourpeople” on page 49.

For role-based specialised functions
To enable a more structured learning journey based on
domain expertise, we have also customised several learning
modules for specific departments within the banks. For
example, to operationalise our net zero commitments andbuild competencies on climate-related risks and opportunities,
we conducted climate activation training for our Relationshipmanagers (RMs) and Credit Risk Managers (CRMs).
Read more about our specialised training in “Responsible financing” onpage 16.

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Stakeholder engagement
We have ongoing dialogue and closely collaborate with
our key stakeholders, which helps us to continuously
refine our business strategy and strengthens our ability
to create long-term value.

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Customers
We interact with customers to better understandtheir requirements so that we can provide theright financial solutions for them.

Employees
We communicate with our employees via multiple channels to ensure that our employees feel
purposeful, feel connected, feel invested in, feelvalued and feel cared for.

Society
We engage the community to better understandthe role we can play to address societal needs
and gaps.

Regulators and policy makers
We strive to be a good corporate citizen andadvocate by providing input to and supporting
the implementation of relevant local and global
laws, regulations, guidelines, and public policies.
Additionally, we seek to be a strong representative
voice for Asia and Asian financial services at local
and global industry forums.

•••

 ultiple service channels, including digitalMbanking, call centres and branches.
Regular engagements via relationshipmanagers and subject matter specialists,
where appropriate.
Active interaction and prompt follow-up
to queries/ feedback received via social
media platforms such as Facebook,
LinkedIn, and Twitter, as well as our
corporate websites.
Regular satisfaction surveys.
Participation in conferences,
masterclasses, and events bringing
together partners and industry leaders
for networking and knowledge sharing.

•“ Tell Piyush” – an online forum where
over 550 employee questions andfeedback items were conveyed to theCEO.
“DBS Open” – quarterly group-wide
townhall hosted by the CEO.
Regular department townhalls and events
held by senior management.
Annual “My Voice” Employee Engagement
survey and quarterly Employee
Experience surveys.
Employee Experience Council – drive
iconic employee journeys to enhance
employee experience.
Culture Builders – more than 1200
employees engage fellow employees togather feedback.

• egular events and conversations withR
Businesses for Impact, community
partners and social service agencies tounderstand the social landscape and how
DBS can partner to create impact.
Connection with government bodies andassociations, including Singapore Centre
for Social Enterprise and Community
Chest.
Strong partnerships with academia to
jointly tackle real-world sustainability
challenges.
Community engagement within the public
housing estates (heartlands) and ourneighbours through POSB.

•

 etail customers are seeking greaterRstability and security, alongside growing
demand for digital services. They also prefergreater product variety and features toenable seamless user experiences.
Many retail customers are also expecting
stronger customer protection amid thefast-evolving scam and fraud tactics, toprevent scammers from fraudulently
logging into their banking accounts.
Many small and medium enterprise (SME)
customers continue to have working
capital requirements to support them as
they pivot in a post pandemic, escalating
inflation environment.
There is growing interest amongst
corporate and SME customers toembrace sustainability as part of theirbusiness strategy. Many are seeking
to strengthen internal capabilities,
collaboration and new partnershipestablishments to enhance theirsustainability and decarbonisation efforts.

•

 uestions and feedback raised via
Q“Tell Piyush” covered topics such as
corporate strategy, culture, technology
and workplace management, employeecompensation, benefits and welfare aswell as customer experience.
Through the annual employee
engagement survey and quarterly
employee experience survey, the key
areas of concern raised by employees arearound wellbeing (work-related stress),and rewards and recognition.

•

 growing number of SMEs and socialA
enterprises (SEs) are open to adopt moresustainable business models, but areoften held back by operational mattersand may lack the bandwidth or resources
to kickstart their transition journey.
They seek catalytic capital and strong
partners to enable them to scale up theirbusinesses and deepen their positivesocial and environment impact.
An uneven post-pandemic economic
recovery and stubbornly high inflation
have exacerbated the plight of thefinancially vulnerable with somesegments of society facing acutechallenges in making ends meet.

•

How did we engage?

The outcomes of the stakeholder engagement
inform our understanding of the ESG factors that arematerial to our business, which helps to define ourstrategic priorities and guide the development andimplementation of our initiatives.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Investors
We provide timely and detailed disclosures toenable investors to make informed investment
decisions with DBS. We also seek their perspectives on our financial performance and strategy,
including sustainability matters.

•

Quarterly result briefings.
Investor Day 2023, which drew physicalparticipation from 45 firms and was wellreceived by analysts and fund managers
who attended in person.
One-on-one and group meetings
with over 550 investors, conducted
either online or in-person, including
conferences.

•
•

•
•

•

What are the key topics raised and feedback received?

We define our key stakeholders as those who are mostimpacted by our business activities, as well as thosewith the greatest ability to influence them. They include
our investors, customers, employees, society, as well
as regulators and policy makers. We proactively
engage with these key stakeholders through a varietyof channels to both understand and respond to theirconcerns and interests.

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking••

Impact on business outlook andcredit quality from peaking interest
rates, geopolitical uncertainty, slowing
economic growth and pressures from
China’s real estate sector.
Prospect for higher dividends given highCommon Equity Tier 1 (CET 1) level andReturn on Equity.
Environmental, social and governance(ESG) commitments and our progress
towards targets. Specifically, climatechange, corporate governance,technology resilience, and othersocial issues such as human capitalmanagement and rising inequality arehighlighted as priorities to manage.

•

•

•

•

•
•
•
•
•

•

•

•
•

•

•

•
•

•

•

 egular engagement sessions withR
regulators, government bodies andpublic agencies in one-on-one or groupmeetings.
Sharing insights and expertise with,and providing feedback to, regulators,
government bodies, and public agencies
as an industry leader, including actively
participating in regulator or governmentled working groups, committees orforums.
Actively participating in local, regional,
and international industry forums on
financial regulation.
Actively responding to, or providing
feedback on Consultation Papers, draft
regulations or guidelines, or policy
statements or papers.
 nsure business resilience and continueEproviding innovative financial services tomaintain stability of the financial system.
Key regulatory and reporting topics being
discussed and introduced in the banking
industry include:• Technology and cyber security• Money laundering and terrorism financing• Artificial intelligence applications• Climate changeNew regulatory and legal requirements,
as well as new global or market
standards in new growth areas such as
fintech/ tech platforms, carbon markets,sustainable financing, green taxonomies,
and climate and nature-related reportingand disclosures.

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Investors
We provide timely and detailed disclosures toenable investors to make informed investment
decisions with DBS. We also seek their perspectives on our financial performance and strategy,
including sustainability matters.

Customers
We interact with customers to better understandtheir requirements so that we can provide theright financial solutions for them.

Employees
We communicate with our employees via multiple channels to ensure that our employees feel
purposeful, feel connected, feel invested in, feelvalued and feel cared for.

Society
We engage the community to better understandthe role we can play to address societal needs
and gaps.

Regulators and policy makers
We strive to be a good corporate citizen andadvocate by providing input to and supporting
the implementation of relevant local and global
laws, regulations, guidelines, and public policies.
Additionally, we seek to be a strong representative
voice for Asia and Asian financial services at local
and global industry forums.

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

How did we respond?

CEO Message

 e provided detailed disclosures andWcommentary on business outlook,financial performance, and credit quality.
We held an investor day to provide
further details on how digitalisation has
structurally improved our franchise andprovided a medium-term ROE target range.
We reiterated our policy to pay
sustainable dividends that growprogressively with earnings andcommitted to raising baseline dividend
per share by 24 cents per year. We alsoaffirmed our CET-1 target range andguided to return excess capital.
We responded to the ESG queries
and highlighted key information about
our sustainability strategy throughemail correspondence, as well as
both online and in-person meetings.
We also provided details on how weare operationalising our net zerocommitment, including how we engage
with customers on their decarbonisation
strategies.

Read more in the “CFO statement” in our Annual
Report and our Investor Day on our website.

•

•

•

•

 o improve service reliability, weTestablished a comprehensive roadmap
that will strengthen technology
resiliency and recovery. We reinforced
our Respectful, Easy to Deal With,
Dependable (RED) service standards bydeveloping an extensive empathy training
programme to enhance our ability
to solve the root causes of negative
experiences. We continue to adopt acustomer-obsessed culture and improvebanking journeys.
We also developed new anti-malware
security measures, including access
restrictions to online banking apps whenpotential security risks are detected anda suite of self-managed security controls
to empower customers to proactively
safeguard themselves.
We approved over 4,400 unsecuredloans totalling SGD 665 million to microand small businesses and continued
to harness our data capabilities toproactively reach out to our SME
customers to address their working
capital requirements.
We intensified our client engagement on
their net zero and transition strategies toempower our clients on their sustainability
planning and decarbonisation journeys. In
2023, we established several partnerships
to connect our clients with a networkof solution providers and accelerated
innovative financing solutions through theBusiness for Impact (BFI) Banking Package
to SMEs with sustainable business models,among others.
We also advocated for sustainability
capability and capacity building. For
example, we partnered with SkillsFuture
Singapore, a Singapore government
agency, to upskill SMEs and help
strengthen their sustainability skills throughthe DBS SME Skills Booster programme.

• iyush personally addressed all questionsPand comments raised. Employees
were also engaged regularly throughquarterly pulse surveys to identify areasof concerns and/ or pain points. Where
applicable, all issues and suggestions
raised, and insights received, weredirected to relevant departments and COO
offices for follow-up.
DBS has continually improved our
employee experience in response toemployee feedback, resulting in more
impactful outcomes such as improved
employee advocacy, retention andmotivation. In 2023, we established the
Employee Experience Council to prioritise
four focus areas: employee well-being,
workload, assimilation of new hires, andrewards & recognition.

Read more about “ Enhancing employee engagement
and culture” on page 46.

••

 e awarded SGD 3.7 million in grantW
funding to 24 awardees across theregion through the 2023 DBS Foundation
Business for Impact Grant Award. This
programme is to recognise, reward andsupport both SMEs and SEs to scale theirbusiness model and deepen their social
and/ or environmental impact.
We continued to scale our volunteerism
footprint by encouraging employees
to embrace new creative ways ofvolunteering, incorporating a hybrid of
in-person and virtual approaches. In
transcending limitations and geographicalconstraints, we successfully redefined theconcept of volunteering.
In August 2023, we announced acommitment of up to SGD 1 billion
over the next 10 years to improve lives
and livelihoods of the low-income andunderprivileged, and foster a more
inclusive society.

Read more about “DBS foundation” on page 82 and“Employee volunteerism” on page 87.

•

•

•

 ollowing the technology incidents inF2023, we have laid out a comprehensive
roadmap to further enhance ourresilience and enhance stakeholder’sconfidence and trust. To reinforce
governance and oversight of technology
risk, we established the Board Technology
Risk Committee.
We partnered regulators, industry peers,and enforcement agencies to address therisk of mobile malware and respond to
the evolving online scams targeting ourbanking customers.
We collaborated with regulators andindustry peers to plan and execute anindustry-wide cyber security exercise to
test and improve the industry readinessto respond to a wide scale cyber security
affecting the banking ecosystem.
We contributed to various regulatory
consultations and discussions, as wellas industry working groups including(amongst others):• The Singapore-Asia Taxonomy by MAS• MAS Consultation Papers on Transition
Planning Guidelines• ASIFMA’s White Paper on Upscaling
Carbon Markets Across APAC
• Creating a national ESG data utility for SMEs
• The Green Skills Future Committee, set upby the Ministry of Trade and Industry inpartnership with SkillsFuture Singapore

Read more about “Technology resilience” onpage 67, “Preventing financial crime” on page 74,
and “Responsible financing” on page 16.

Read more in “Technology resilience” on page 67,“Responsible financing” on page 16, “Sustainable living”
on page 37, and “Financial inclusion” on page 40.

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Material ESG factors

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Our Material ESG factors

Materiality is an important principle that we use to ensure we remain focused on the sustainability-related risks andopportunities that support our resiliency and ability to create long-term value.
Our material ESG factors influence how the Board and management steer the bank. They inform our approach to
governance, risk management, strategy and reporting.
In the context of our reporting on sustainability, materiality helps to make sure that our disclosures are responsive andrelevant to our stakeholders.

Our materiality assessment process

2. Assess & prioritise

1. Identify the sustainability-related impacts, risks andopportunities relevant for DBS across our value chain by:• Incorporating feedback from stakeholder engagements,
with a focus on gathering investor views on materiality• Research into industry developments and benchmarking
against global peers• Referencing relevant sector standards and frameworks,
such as those from GRI and SASB
Read more about our stakeholder engagement on page 10.

2. Assess & prioritise the identified ESG factors basedon a “double materiality” approach, which considers:• Impact materiality: Significance of our outward impacts
on the economy, environment, and people• Financial materiality: Significance of the ESG factor
for our ability to drive long-term value creation

3. Validate

In 2023, we updated our annual review of our material ESG factors, following our four-step process. As a result, weamended two material ESG factors to provide a clearer description of their associated impacts, risks and opportunities.
Responsible financing was changed to climate change, and building a great corporate culture was changed to employee
engagement and culture. We also created a new topic on the overall resilience of technology at DBS, which includes theprevious topic of cyber security. For all the ESG factors listed below, we confirmed their ongoing importance. Finally, we
have updated how we present our material ESG factors, which are now classified into two categories:

Strategic ESG
priorities

We review our material ESG factors annually following a four-step process :1. Identify

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

4. Integrate

3. Validate the prioritised list of material ESG factors
included discussion with key business and support units,
before being reviewed by:• Group Sustainability Council• Group Chief Executive Officer• Board Sustainability Committee
4. Integrate the resulting material ESG factors into
governance structures, risk management processes,
strategy development and our reporting to stakeholders.
Where relevant, metrics and targets on our material ESG
factors are included in our balanced scorecard to set
objectives, drive behaviours, measure performanceand determine the remuneration of our people
Read more about our balanced scorecard approach under“Our 2023 priorities” in our Annual Report.

ESG fundamentals

These form the focus of ourstrategy for sustainable value
creation. They represent thegreatest business opportunities
for differentiation and ourbusiness-critical risk areas. They
are also the areas where webelieve we can have the greatest
positive impact on sustainable
development.

These form the foundationof sustainability at DBS andunderpin our ability to drive
long-term value creation andensure we operate as a responsible
and sustainable business.
Diversity, equity andinclusion

Employee engagement
and culture

Employeevolunteerism

Fair dealing

ClimatechangeTechnology resilience(incl. cyber security)

Human rights

Operational
environmental
footprint

Developing
our people

Data governance

Responsible tax

Sustainableprocurement

Financial crime
prevention

Financial inclusion

Supporting social enterprises and the community

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Highlights

Human rights
At DBS, we believe that every individual has human rights asenshrined in the United Nations’ Universal Declaration on
Human Rights. We also recognise that today the world faces
considerable social and human rights challenges that require
collaboration between all members of society to overcome.
In our capacity as a leading financial institution in Asia, we arecommitted to respecting human rights across all aspectsof our business. Our approach has been designed toacknowledge the economic, legal, social, cultural, historicaland religious context in Asia where we operate.

Governance of human rights
In 2022, we established a Human Rights Policy, which wasapproved by our Board Sustainability Committee (BSC) andformalised our commitment to respect human rights. Our
Chief Sustainability Officer has oversight of our policy andapproach to respect human rights, and works closely withother members of our management team to embed humanrights due diligence across our business. Responsibility andresources for day-to-day implementation of human rights
due diligence sits with our business units and support
functions where appropriate.
Our Human Rights Policy forms part of a set of policies andframeworks that work to embed human rights due diligenceand enable remediation of any adverse human rights
impacts across our business.
The Human Rights Policy
Sets out our overarching approach to human rights, andincludes our commitment to the United Nations Guiding
Principles on Businesses and Human Rights.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

The Group Responsible Financing Standard
Documents our approach to responsible financing, covering
ESG issues, which expressly includes human rights. It outlines
ESG-related prohibited transactions, which includes
finance activities associated with forced labour, childlabour, and violation of the rights of local communities. It is
supplemented by nine Sector Guides which provide more
sector-specific guidance in sectors with elevated humanrights risks. Our sector guides provide our RelationshipManagers and Credit Risk Managers a structured approachto assessing human rights risks.
Read more about our approach in our Responsible financing chapter
on page 23.

The Group Code of Conduct and Diversity,
Equity and Inclusion Policy
Articulates the professional, ethical and legal principles DBS
is committed to and the highest standards of behaviour
expected of everyone working at DBS, including no tolerance
for discrimination and harassment, and encouraging
employees who witness inappropriate behaviour to speak
up without fear of retribution so as to build an equitable andinclusive workplace for all.
Read more about our approach in our Driving diversity, equity and inclusion
chapter on page 52.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Our approach to embedding human rights due diligence
1. Identifying salient(1) human rights issues
In 2023, we conducted a review to update our understanding of the most significant human rights risks across our businessactivities and relationships. This review included internal discussions and an analysis of our existing policies and practices,which are informed by various industry and regulatory led initiatives. It was supplemented by desk-based research into
relevant human rights risks for banks and benchmarking against leading global peers.
Relevance to our business
Human rights risks

Institutional banking
clients

Consumer banking
customers

Our employees

Our suppliers

Forced labour
Child labour
Workers’ rights(2)Community rights(3)Discrimination and harassment
Customer privacy
Customer indebtedness
and financial health

Sustainable Sourcing Principles
Outlines our strategy for the purchasing of goods andservices to meet DBS’ requirements for human rights, safety
and health, environmental sustainability, and business ethics
and integrity. All new suppliers are asked to agree to theseprinciples upon contracting with us.
Read more about our approach in our Sustainable procurement chapter
on page 66.

Read more about our Human Rights Policy.

(1) Refers to human rights issues that are at risk of the most severe negative impacts through our activities or business relationships.
(2)	Workers’ rights include fair wages, reasonable working hours, safe working conditions, as well as freedom of association and collective bargaining.
(3) Community rights include cultural, land and resource related rights.
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CEO Message

Highlights

2.	Assessing and addressing human rights impacts
As a bank, we recognise that we can contribute to humanrights across different areas of our business. We aim torespect human rights in our roles:
As a lender and services provider: for more details on
our approach, see sections on Responsible financing, Data
governance and Fair dealing.
As an employer in our workplace: for more details on
our approach, see sections Driving diversity, equity andinclusion as well as Enhancing employee engagement
and culture.
As a partner in our supply chains: for more details on
our approach, see section on Sustainable procurement.
3. Grievance mechanisms
We are committed to taking appropriate measures toaddress actual and potential human rights impacts
identified by our due diligence process. If we have caused
any actual adverse impact, DBS will take appropriate
remedial actions.
In each market where we operate, DBS maintains multiple
channels of communication for our stakeholders, including
customers, employees, and suppliers, to share theirconcerns with us. In addition to these communication
channels, DBS Speak Up is our whistleblowing programme,
run by an independent third party. It provides a safe
environment for internal and external parties to raisegenuine concerns on potential misconduct on the part of
DBS, its staff, suppliers or third parties relating to DBS.
Read more about the DBS Speak Up programme in our Preventing financial
crime chapter on page 74.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

4. Responding to human rights concerns
To ensure timely and appropriate response to any reportsof environmental and social incidents, including adverse
human rights impacts, we developed an Environmental &Social Incident Management Guide, which complements
existing DBS controls. The guide was tabled and discussed
by our Board Sustainability Committee (BSC) in 2023 and will
be implemented in 2024.
The guide sets out a process flow chart that provides
flexibility for multiple pathways for resolution, to ensurethat the most appropriate action can be taken. The processincludes:• T he establishment of a cross-departmental working
group to manage the incident• Escalation, management and resolution procedures• A post-incident review to identify lessons learnt andincorporate changes into existing processes to improve
our approach• Record keeping to preserve relevant information

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

6. Reporting and communication
We are committed to reporting on internal policy
developments and the work we do in relation to humanrights, including the evaluation of human rights risks, andour response to human rights impacts.
We believe that greater transparency builds trust, and as we
refine our approach to human rights in the coming years,
we will report on our progress as well as the challenges
and trade-offs we face. Our ambition in our human rights
journey is to understand the impact that DBS has throughour business. We will raise awareness through enhanced
disclosures and continual and robust engagement with our
stakeholders: our employees, clients, and business partners.
Our Modern Slavery Statement
Published annually since 2016 and highlights the steps wehave taken to address the risks of modern slavery in ourorganisation, financing practices and supply chains.
Read more about our Modern Slavery Statement.

5.	Tracking the effectiveness of our human rights due
diligence processes
DBS is committed to continuously improving our approachto respecting human rights. A post-incident review isconducted following the resolution of a human rights
incident to identify lessons learnt and incorporate changes
into existing processes to improve our approach.
An ESG dashboard that includes any material human rights
incidents is reported to the BSC on a quarterly basis. In
2023, we also held two sessions with the BSC on ESG risks,
including human rights risks arising from grievances andlitigation examples related to the banking industry. DBS
is committed to continuously improving our approach torespecting human rights.

From Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTSPILLAR 1

Responsible

Banking• Responsible financing• Sustainable living• Financial inclusion

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Responsible financing

Supporting Asia’s transition to a low-carbon economy
As a bank, the largest impact we create is through ourfinancing activities. It is critical that we continually strengthen
our capabilities to support a more sustainable, just andprosperous society.
A key priority is accelerating climate action, given its
urgency and how it is linked to other environmental andsocio-economic challenges. Tackling climate change is a
global imperative. We are already witnessing the impacts
of a changing climate, and unless urgent action is taken to
decarbonise our economies, these impacts will worsen.
At DBS, we have made significant progress in translating
our climate ambition into action. Since becoming a signatoryof the Net Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA) in October 2021,
we announced our net zero commitments and established
our very first set of science-informed decarbonisation
targets for our Scope 3 financed emissions in 2022.
Our 2030 and 2050 climate targets guide and direct
our lending and financing efforts to support the economywide transformation.

“Sustainability continues to be high on national and corporate agendas,
as a growing urgency for climate action raises the stakes for a justenergy transition. Asia will be where the climate battle is won or lost.
We continue to channel capital towards sustainable activities, findinga right balance between economic growth and inclusive development
for all”.

Our climate strategy
To operationalise our climate strategy and commitment to net zero, we have established a dedicated steering committee
which provides oversight across policies, processes and platforms. We are also committed to reporting our progress on anannual basis, and to review our targets and approach at least every five years.
Read more about our governance of climate change in the Governance on sustainability chapter on page 9.

Our ambition

To achieve a net zero future while recognising our social
responsibility to foster a just and inclusive transition

Our lending and ﬁnancing
Our operations
Business opportunity

Our priorities

Our enablers

Risk management

Providing advisory
and ﬁnancial solutions to support ourclients in their decarbonisation andtransition plans

Forging newpartnerships toprovide supply
chain and related
ﬁnancing

Integrating climate
considerations into
our risk management processes toensure the short,medium andlong-term resilienceof our business

Developing analytical
tools and improving
climate data analytics

Engaging withindustries andpolicymakers

Ensuring robust
governanceprocesses

Managing ouroperationalemissions
Read more on how
we are managing ourenvironmental footprint
on page 59.

Reskilling andempowering
our people

Su Shan TAN, Group Head of Institutional Banking

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Client engagement

How we help our clients:

As part of our client engagement strategy, we integrate
climate mitigation and adaptation considerations
into our sector strategies and account planning process.
We embed our ambition and commitment to net zeroin our client engagement, while recognising limitations
and challenges different sectors face in their business
operations. This allows us to group clients into archetypes,
based on their level of maturity in their sustainability
journey, and offer financing solutions and advice tailored totheir needs.

• F inancing solutions to support their pipeline ofinvestment measures, including the establishment ofsustainable finance frameworks;• Advisory on mitigation of their emissions across theirvalue chain; and• Sharing insights on key industry ESG considerations,
including climate-related risks and opportunities fortheir sector.
We have engaged our most carbon-intensive clients on net
zero planning. These conversations help us to understandwhere our clients are on their net zero journey and how
DBS could partner with them in their decarbonisation efforts.

Power

Shipping

Aviation

Steel

Automotive

Real Estate

Does the client have any transition plans?
Yes

No

Is their decarbonisation/transition plan 1.5ºC aligned?

Which reference scenario does
the client use (if any)?

What are the reasons for nothaving a transition plan?

What are the challenges
faced by the client?

How can DBS help?

How can DBS help?

Almost 90% of the top emitting clients that we have engaged have a net zero plan

(1)

S&P Global Commodity Insights (Platts), IATA Sustainability & Economics (1 September 2023)

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

We are encouraged that the vast majority of our top
emitting clients already possess a net zero plan. However,
we recognise that many of our clients face these common
challenges in their transition to net zero:
1.	Certain key technologies for decarbonisation remain
nascent and the sectoral ecosystems that support the
deployment of these technologies are currently not
mature enough for alternatives to become commercially
viable. For example, in 2022, production of Sustainable
Aviation Fuel (SAF) comprised only 0.1%(1) of overall
volume of jet fuel used. Scaling SAF production in
a competitive market requires an expansion of thefeedstock mix, and support from industry players to drive
down prices.
Enabling our relationship management
teams to effectively engage clients
Our approach to steering portfolios towards net zero isdriven by robust internal processes and digital tools:

We identiﬁed and actively engaged at least
the top 10 emitters from each of our priority sectors

Oil & Gas

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

2.	Supply chain constraints such as labour shortages or scarcity
of raw materials. For example, the lack of scrap metals in Asia
for a less carbon-intensive process of steel production.
3.	The lack of government incentives to support the
adoption of low-carbon solutions including electricvehicles and charging stations, which impede theiraffordability especially in emerging markets.
In our next phase, we will continue to refine our client
engagement approach on climate mitigation to further
evaluate the feasibility and robustness of their transition plans.
We will also continue to roll out innovative financing solutions,especially through new strategic ecosystem partnerships.
Read more in the next section on "Business opportunities".

insights on our customers' risk management measures
as well as financing and transition needs.

3.	Actively manage portfolio with digital tools
Since establishing our net zero targets, we focused on
1.	Regular cadence with sector
developing tools to support our RMs to understand ourteams to monitor performance
clients’ position on climate change and forecast their future
A central team of sustainable finance experts maintains
climate change performance using scenario analysis.
active dialogue with sector coverage teams across
Our Climate Analytics Tool (CAT) generates insights
all our core markets and where we have a sizable
on the simulated emissions performance trends
international presence. This ensures ESG considerationsof a client over the short, medium and long-term.
and clients’ decarbonisation plans are at the forefront
This facilitates more in-depth and forward-lookingof our Relationship Managers’ (RM) minds. To help
conversations to guide our clients in operationalising
teams stay abreast of industry developments, market
their decarbonisation plans more effectively.
trends, government legislations, and technological	Additionally, a portfolio management function helps
advancements, we invite knowledge partners, industry
industry and segment heads, as well as with seniorassociations, or governance bodies to conduct learning
leaders within the bank simulate how various factors
sessions for our RMs and Credit Risk Managers (CRMs).
could impact a sector’s emissions performance. This
2.	Leverage ESG Risk Questionnaire
includes potential new businesses, loan rundowns, or(ERQ) to engage clientschanges in customer operating models. The CAT has
We have progressively enhanced our ERQ, which
been tailored for our priority sectors, covering Power, Oilguides RMs to evaluate ESG risks and opportunities& Gas, Real Estate, Steel, and Aviation, with plans for theconsistently, forming the basis for more informed client
other sectors to be completed in 2024.
engagements. This enables the bank to gain clearer

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Industry and policy engagement

Business opportunities

Engagement with industry and policymakers is one of the key enablers in our climate strategy. We contribute our views on
industry and policy matters through regular participation in various industry or government-led working groups, technicalcommittees, forums, and one-on-one meetings. We seek to promote the development and adoption of policies, frameworks,
and guidance that accelerate action on climate change both in the markets we operate in and globally.

Providing innovative financing solutions
We provide practical and innovative financing solutions forour clients to implement their sustainability strategies. Oursustainable financing offerings are deployed principally
through (i) loans and trade financing, and (ii) bonds.

Below are some examples of our industry and policy engagements in 2023:
SupportingtheTransition

Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)DBS actively participated in several MAS projects
and working groups, such as on managed coalphase out. We have committed to being a partnerin the MAS-convened project, the Transition
Credits Coalition (TRACTION). The project aims
to explore the creation of credible, high-integrity
transition credits to support the managed and earlyphase out of coal power plants.

Glasgow Financial Alliancefor Net Zero (GFANZ)

DBS co-led a workstream as part of the GFANZ
guidance paper on ‘Financing the Managed
Phaseout of Coal-Fired Power Plants in Asia Pacific’.

Skills andJobs

Green Skills Committee (GSC)

DBS is a member of the GSC, which is convenedby the Singapore Ministry of Trade and Industry(MTI). The GSC aims to support the developmentof skills in line with evolving industry needs, asSingapore moves towards a sustainable, lowercarbon economy.

ReportingandDisclosure

Green Finance Industry Taskforce (GFIT)

DBS was the co-chair in the disclosure workstreamof the MAS-convened GFIT. The taskforce comprises ofrepresentatives from financial institutions, corporates,
non-governmental organisations, and financial
industry associations which aims to (i) develop ataxonomy; (ii) improve disclosures; (iii) foster green
finance solutions; and (iv) enhance environmental
risk management practices of financial institutions.

Sustainability Reporting
Advisory Committee (SRAC)

DBS is a member of the SRAC, which was jointly
set up by Singapore’s Accounting and Corporate
Regulatory Authority (ACRA) and the Singapore
Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo). The committee
is responsible for developing a sustainability
reporting roadmap for Singapore-incorporated
companies, including the adoption of theInternational Financial Reporting Standards’ (IFRS)
sustainability standards.

Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)
Technical Committee

DBS sits on the GRI technical committee and supports
the development of the banking standard, which will
be one of three standards (banking, insurance andcapital markets) developed for the financial services
sector. DBS is the sole representative from Asia Pacific.

World Business Council for
Sustainable Development (WBCSD)

DBS is a member of WBCSD and participates inseveral project groups including the working groupon Redefining Value, which helps companies address
the link between sustainability efforts and valuation.

(i) Loans and trade financing
With increasing momentum around the need to create
positive environmental and social impact, our sustainablefinancing commitment, net of repayments, wasaround SGD 70 billion as of December 2023, up from
more than SGD 51 billion from the previous year end.
To help accelerate clients’ decarbonisation efforts, especiallythose in hard-to-abate sectors, it is critical that we provide
financing for climate mitigation solutions. In addition tofinancing green and renewable energy projects, enabling
financing for the transition to lower carbon alternatives in
hard-to-abate sectors is equally important to achieve a justand orderly transition.

Case Study 1: DBS structured the first SustainabilityLinked Loan for global semiconductor company
Nexperia as the Sole Original Mandated Lead
Arranger, Bookrunner and Sustainability Coordinator.
The USD 800 million loan utilised environmental and social
key performance indicators (KPIs) relating to greenhousegas emissions and gender diversity with a focus on
including more women in management positions. The
proceeds are earmarked towards refinancing, general
corporate and working capital purposes.
Nexperia issued its first Sustainability Report in 2023 andannounced its target of achieving carbon neutrality by 2035.
The KPIs used are a reaffirmation of their commitment.

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Case Study 2: Supporting Indonesia’s transition to
low-carbon transportation (electric vehicles (EV))
through Green Trade Finance.
DBS provided a USD 16 million (IDR 244 billion) Green Trade Financefacility to PT Indomobil Sukses Internasional Tbk (Indomobil), an
integrated automotive business group. This landmark transaction
represents Indomobil Group’s first green trade finance facility and
DBS’ first such facility in Indonesia. To meet increasing demand
for low-carbon vehicles, Indomobil plans to utilise the facility togrow its fleet of EV assets. The proceeds of the facility are used tofinance the purchase of battery electric vehicles and electric vehicle
auto-parts in Indonesia. The transaction aligns with the Indonesian
government’s sustainability goals to expand the domestic EV
ecosystem, as part of the nation’s decarbonisation agenda.

Case Study 3: DBS acted as the financial advisor, leadarranger, facility and security agent, account bank,green loan advisor of a USD 100 million syndicatedgreen loan to China Electric Power Equipment andTechnology Co. Ltd. (CET) for supporting PLN’s
Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) service.
Through this relatively low-cost solution to generate remote andautomated real-time readings to the energy supplier – it cuts
down manpower and logistic costs, identify service issues quickly
resulting in improved uptime and energy conservation as well as
informing strategies to improve energy efficiency. For example,
users can access pricing data so they can utilise smart tariffs(2) byusing excess renewable energy when available and accelerating
the transition journeyCase Study 4: Providing loans to individuals to buy
affordable housing through HDFC of up to USD 750 million.
DBS acted as one of the Joint Social Loan Coordinators to executea USD 750 million syndicated social loan for Housing Development
Finance Corporation (HDFC) Ltd, India’s largest housing financecompany. Proceeds of the facility are utilised for financing ofaffordable housing in accordance with HDFC’s Social Financing
Framework. Affordable housing is defined as a housing projectusing at least 50% of the Floor Area Ratio/Floor Space Index fordwelling units with carpet area of not more than 60 square meters.

Read more about our Commitments and memberships on page 107.

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

In addition to the above sustainable financing solutions, we
also facilitate the accelerated phase out of high-emitting
assets, such as the early and managed phase-out (MPO)of coal-fired power plants in Asia, among others. Coalfired power plants in Asia are among the youngest in theworld. Although accelerating their early retirement will
be complex and costly given the socio-economic context
in Asia, it is key towards meeting the goals of the Paris
Agreement and achieving a low-carbon future. To this end,
we are supportive of the global efforts related to the earlyand MPO of coal in Asia, and have collaborated in initiatives
with research and advocacy efforts to foster an ecosystemapproach. Furthermore, we recognise that such financing(for example, the early retirement of coal-fired power plants)

would impact our near-term financed emissions reduction
progress. However, we see this as a strategic move insupporting the longer-term climate positive outcome.
This will be conducted with reference to regulatory
recommendations, industry standards and best practices
prevailing at that time.

Case Study 5: The early retirement of a coal-fired power
plant in Indonesia, the first under Asian Development
Bank’s Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM) – Cirebon-1,
a 660-MW coal-fired power plant.

to better identify target projects and scale the ETM programme.
The signing of a non-binding Framework Agreement between the
Asian Development Bank, PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara, PT Cirebon
Electric Power and INA during the 28th Conference of Parties(COP28) in December 2023 was a testament to DBS' advisory
capability.

In 2022, DBS was engaged as the sole financial advisor to
the Indonesia Investment Authority’s (INA) Energy Transition
Mechanism (ETM), a pioneering initiative to achieve the early
retirement of the 660MW Cirebon-1 power plant and accelerate
Indonesia’s energy transition. DBS advised on various matters, suchas debt and equity capital structuring, selection of international
impact investor(s), market sounding for the debt, and structuringof the platform with PT Sarana Multi Infrastructure, among others,

As we are concluding our advisory mandate for theIndonesian Investment Authority (INA) and reaching
financial close for the Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM)
programme in Indonesia, we will disclose the positionsof our Power portfolio's emissions with and without theadditional emissions arising from the early retirement ofcoal power assets in Asia.
Read more about our approach to phase out thermal coal financing on
page 22.

This partnership aligns with the Indonesian government’s
sustainability goals to achieve significant emission reductions
through a scalable model that can be applied to other integrated
power players in Indonesia and beyond.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Financing infrastructure projects for climate adaptation
Climate adaptation measures are often assessed and embedded in infrastructure projects that we finance, including
financings related to toll roads, sanitation, waste, and run-of-the-river hydroelectric projects, among others.
Additionally, clients have started including climate adaptation plans in their construction designs. Selected clients that
we have worked with are highlighted below.
In 2022, DBS was the sole green structuring advisor
to the Ministry of Finance (MOF) Singapore in defining
Singapore’s Green Bond framework, which reopened
its Singapore Sovereign Green Bond issuance in August2023. The additional SGD 2.8 billion tap issue allowed
the government to raise additional funds using the sameterms as the original issuance. Some of the proceeds
were allocated to coastal defence and nature-based
solutions aimed at strengthening climate adaptation.

DBS advised and co-developed PSA Singapore’s Green
Finance Framework, which was launched in June 2023.
Some of these green eligible projects include:• Investments in the port infrastructure to make it
adaptive to climate risks.
• Adaptation to existing PSA quays to protect against
the threat of rising sea levels and manage flooding
risks through more efficient drainage systems.

These solutions include:• C oastal and inland flood resilience by taming storm waterand protecting against the threat of rising sea levels.
• Measures to mitigate the Urban Heat Island ("UHI")
effect through urban planning and building design
optimised for shade and wind flow, and integratingurban greenery to reduce heat absorption.

Under this advisory mandate, the power purchase agreement forthe 660-MW Cirebon-1 plant is slated to end around seven years
earlier than scheduled.

(2)	A smart tariff is a type of energy tariff that varies depending on the time of day or the amount of energy used. This means that consumers can savemoney by using energy at off-peak times, when demand is lower.

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CEO Message

Highlights(ii) Bonds
Capital markets activity was muted in 2023. Despite this,DBS continued to maintain pole position in the SGD bondmarkets, while also gaining market share across regionalbond markets. During the year, we facilitated close to
SGD 18 billion of ESG bond issuances for our clients, mostof which are in the form of green and sustainable bonds.
Some of the notable ESG bond transactions, where DBS was
involved as an active bookrunner during the year, include
the following:• China Power International Limited	In February 2023, DBS Securities (China) Limited – oursecurities joint venture in China – assisted China Power
with the issuance of a RMB 800 million green bond, in thefirst green and technology innovation dual-labelled Panda
bond transaction, as sole lead manager. In November
2023, DBS partnered China Power in a RMB 1.2 billion
green panda bond issuance. This also marked the firstever onshore corporate green bond where net proceeds
were used to support projects under the Belt-and-Road
Initiative.
• CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust (CICT)	
DBS helped CICT, one of the largest Real Estate
Investment Trusts (REITs) in Singapore, issue its firstSingapore dollar-denominated green bond in June 2023,
following a successful Hong Kong dollar-denominatedgreen bonds issuance in March. The issuances weremade under CICT’s green finance framework which DBS,
as sole structuring advisor, helped to set up in 2022 tofacilitate fundraising for the company’s green projects.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking• G reen Singapore Government
Securities (SGS) (Infrastructure) Bonds
We continue to play our part to advance Singapore’s
national agenda on sustainable development. We werere-appointed last year as joint bookrunner and soleretail coordinator for the reopening of the 50-year
Green SGS (Infrastructure) bonds by the Government ofSingapore. A total of SGD 2.8 billion additional issuancewas successfully executed in this fundraising exercise,
which continued to see strong demand and support frominvestors. The proceeds from this issuance will be used tofinance expenditures in support of the Singapore Green
Plan 2030, including the Jurong Region Line and the Cross
Island Line.
Forging new strategic partnerships
Besides the need for financing, companies also need tobuild their sustainability capabilities and capacity. Basedon engagement with our clients, we understand that many
companies that are just starting out on their sustainability
journey may lack specific skillsets in areas such asmeasuring and monitoring carbon emissions, certifications,or sustainability disclosures.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Some notable partnerships we have established in 2023 include:
H&M Group
DBS partnered with the apparel group to establish
collaborative financing solutions to accelerate thenecessary decarbonisation of fashion supply chains.
Through the programme, suppliers get access tosustainable financing from DBS and technical support fromsustainability consultant, Guidehouse, to embark on factory
upgrades to help them improve their energy efficiency.
Unlike traditional banking solutions which seek toencourage such green activities indirectly, this programme
provides direct funding with highly favourable terms to
suppliers for specific GHG emission reduction activities, as
approved by H&M Group. The first successful transaction
was completed in 2023, with a manufacturer in India
to fund capital expenditures to reduce their carbon
emissions. This partnership is the first-of-its-kind green
loan programme in the apparel sector.

CLP Power
In late 2022, DBS Hong Kong partnered CLP Power toprovide SMEs with opportunities to invest in energy
efficiency upgrade. These opportunities were closely tied to
CLP Power's energy-as-a-service business. The successful
partnership was further expanded in June 2023, where weannounced the launch of a new “SME Low-carbon Rewards”
programme. This programme is tailored to further support
Hong Kong SMEs in their transition to a low-carbon
economy, while supporting the development of local
renewable energy and promoting digital payment services
adoption. The partnership also enables more SMEs to tap
into the energy saving services offered by CLP to reduce
operating expenses that would not be possible without.
The programme also offers banking service privileges toeligible SME customers who successfully setup auto-pay
for CLP bills with their DBS accounts, or through the setup
of an electronic billing service directly with CLP. Our DBS
banking privileges on offer include preferential deposit rate
and business account opening fee waiver, among others.

Having identified the common pain points our clients face,
we have begun to establish and grow our ecosystem
partnerships to address the key challenges faced by ourclients and broaden our product offerings to support themon their sustainability journeys.
With our expanding network of partners, we are able toprovide advice on decarbonisation solutions relevant toour customers’ needs across industry sectors, provide
financing to fund those solutions, and offer businessmatching opportunities.

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CEO Message

Highlights

Risk management
Climate change continues to be an important systemicrisk that has an impact across various key risk types, suchas credit, reputation, market, liquidity, operational, andcompliance. Building our climate and ESG risk management
capabilities and integrating climate risk considerations
into our overall enterprise risk management processes
continues to be a top priority.

Ensuring robust risk management processes
Strengthening second line role for ESG
At the start of 2023, the bank established a new ESG Credit
Risk team under Risk Management Group along with a new
management position – Head of ESG Credit Risk – to provide
leadership and expertise to further build our Climate and
ESG risk management capabilities. This new team presents
an additional layer of review as illustrated in our enhanced
ESG risk assessment process, where they act as the secondline of control after our sustainability and business teams.
Enhancing ESG risk assessment
ESG due diligence remains an integral part of our lending
and capital market approval process. It entails assessing
and monitoring our customers in reference to Our
Approach to Responsible Financing, our sector policies andcorresponding sector guides, as well as evaluating their ESG
risk profiles when taking lending and investment decisions.
It also allows us to engage customers on environmental andsocial topics while promoting responsible financing throughagreed mitigating measures.
In July 2023, we strengthened our ESG risk assessment
for our borrowing customers through the introductionof an enhanced ESG Risk Questionnaire (ERQ). The ERQ
is based on the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS)
Environmental Risk Questionnaire, which has been
adapted to include additional questions covering key ESG

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

topics relevant to assessing the risks and adaptability of
our customers. The ERQ facilitates our data collection
for customers’ climate risk disclosures, and is used as acustomer engagement tool to understand customers’transition plans, and explore financing and facilitation
opportunities to support their transition to lower carbon
businesses.
Responses obtained from the ERQ are combined withsector-level inputs from our climate stress testing exercise
to provide an assessment of sector-level climate risk,
individual borrower-level climate risk and other non-climate
related ESG risks. These factors are aggregated to provide
an overall ESG risk score for our customer. Factors that
contribute to higher ESG risk scores may include significant
climate risks (physical or transition), inadequate ESG
governance processes, such as the lack of human rights andmodern slavery policies, among others.
As depicted in Figure 1, our enhanced ESG risk assessment
and customer-specific ESG risk scores are embedded within
our credit approval process. Where necessary, higher ESG
risk scores are escalated for enhanced due diligence andadditional support from the Institutional Banking Group(IBG) Sustainability team (first line) and ESG Credit Risk team(second line) may be required. Once these teams haveestablished that sufficient ESG risk mitigation is available,
the credit application progresses along the credit approval
chain. However, in scenarios where the identified ESG
concerns are not sufficiently mitigated, or may present
material credit and/ or reputational risks to DBS, thecredit application will be declined. Where warranted,
this could lead to a further reassessment of the overallcustomer relationship.
Defined by our internal control framework, our first line
business teams and risk functions have clearly defined roles
and responsibilities in the new ESG risk assessment process.
Our RMs continue to act as the first line by conducting an
ESG risk assessment on the customer, supported by the

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Figure 1: An illustration of the process flow of our enhanced ESG risk assessments within our credit approval process
ESG Risk Assessment (NEW)RM usesenchanced
ESG Risk
Assessment

Sector Level
Climate Risks
Borrower Level
Climate Risks
Non-Climate
ESG RisksCredit Including ESG
Risk assesed assatisfactory

Submission forreview by CRMs
NO

ESG Risk Score(ERS)
Determines
Escalation

Escalation
RequiredYES

enchanced due
diligence by

YES

ApprovedNO
YES
Suﬃcient ESG Risk
Mitigation?

DeclinedNO

Sustainability Team
(First Line)ESG Credit
Risk Team(Second Line)

Sustainability team which reviews escalated transactions
and recommends ESG-related terms and conditions to
mitigate such risks where necessary. As part of the second
line, the ESG Credit Risk team further reviews customers
with higher ESG risk scores before transactions are
submitted to and assessed by our CRMs. Group Audit
serves as the third line of control through periodic audit
reviews on the effectiveness of ESG risk management.
As one of our key enablers to continually deliver andoperationalise our climate agenda, we prioritise reskillingand empowering our people on the subject matter. For
example, extensive training sessions are provided to RMs
and CRMs to enhance skillsets that will allow them to better
assess the ESG risks of our customers. Since inceptionin July 2023, DBS completed the enhanced ESG risk
assessments for over 7,000 customers, representing almost
60% of our total IBG lending exposure as of December
2023. We will continue to monitor the effectiveness of our
ESG risk assessment process and scoring methodology forour customers and further refine and update our approachbased on emerging best practices.

Reviewing our financing policies and standards
To ensure our ESG governance and processes are bothrobust and fit-for-purpose, we regularly review ourfinancing policies and update relevant standards and policy
documents. Our Group Responsible Financing Standard
and Group Core Credit Risk Policy are updated to ensurealignment between our climate strategy and our approaches
to responsible financing and credit risk management. Sector
Guides, which provide a more structured approach toassess ESG risks as part of our overall financing decisions,are also updated for our priority sectors, taking into
consideration mandatory requirements and emerging
best practices.

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CEO Message

Highlights

Update to our approach tophase out thermal coal financing
Asia accounts for around half of global greenhousegas emissions(3). About a third of this arises from its
approximately 5,000 operational coal-fired power plants(4).
Furthermore, coal accounts for almost 60% of power
generation in Asia, with energy demand in this region
expected to double by 2050, driven by strong populationand economic growth(4).
If all of Asia’s existing coal-fired power plants alone wereto run until the end of their operational lifespan we will
exhaust about two-thirds of the carbon budget we haveleft to keep global temperature rise to below 1.5⁰C as
compared to pre-industrial levels. Additionally, even if the
deployment of clean tech solutions and renewable energy
at scale and speed are maximised, which we must, theworld will not be able to accomplish the goals of the Paris
Agreement, unless we drastically reduce the number ofoperational coal power plants in Asia.
Managing the phase-out of coal requires support fromrelevant government and regulatory bodies, the financeand private sectors, as well as affected communities. Our
approach is guided by the GFANZ guidance paper on‘Financing the Managed Phaseout of Coal-Fired Power
Plants in Asia Pacific’, which includes three main steps:• S tep A: Ensuring credibility of relevant energy transitionand coal phaseout commitments and plans• Step B: Optimising ‘meaningful’ impact across climate
impact, financial viability and socioeconomic considerations• Step C: Achieving transparency and accountability forcoal phaseout plans in line with the GFANZ Net Zero
Transition Plan framework
Therefore, our updated thermal coal phase out approach
will consist of the following:

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS• W
 e cease onboarding new customers who derive morethan 25% of their revenue from thermal coal. The
threshold will be lowered as time progresses;• From January 2026, we will stop financing existingcustomers who derive more than 50% of revenue
from thermal coal, except for their non-thermal coalor renewable energy activities. These will be reflectedin legally binding documentation. We will stop general
purpose financing which can be fungible. The threshold
will be lowered as time progresses;• In addition to our internal sustainable and transition
finance frameworks, we will also leverage otherrelevant regional and market taxonomies, such as theSingapore-Asia Taxonomy and the ASEAN Taxonomy 2.0,
among others, to achieve meaningful decarbonisationin sectors which remain reliant on thermal coal.
This will be conducted through engagements withcustomers to establish their transition strategies, andthe incorporation of emissions reduction target in all
applicable sustainability-linked loan structures; and• We will disclose our thermal coal exposure annually in
our Sustainability Report.
Since 2019, we have ceased the financing of any new
thermal coal mining or thermal power assets, and haveprogressively phased down our exposures to thermal
coal year on year. As of December 2023, our exposure tothermal coal was SGD 1.8 billion, down from SGD 2.2 billion
in 2022 and SGD 2.7 billion in 2021.
We are committed to reaching zero thermal coal exposure(encompassing loans to mining and power generation)
latest by 2039. This timeline has been determinedconsidering the final maturity of our existing long-tenor
thermal coal exposure grandfathered from previous
financing commitments, which would have run off by then.

(3) WEF, April 2023. Accelerating Asia's Advantage: A Guide to Corporate Climate Action.
(4) GFANZ, December 2023. Financing the Managed Phaseout of Coal-Fired Power Plants in Asia Pacific.
(5)	The Equator Principles (“EP”) is a voluntary environmental and social risk management framework, adopted by financial institutions, for determining,assessing, and managing environmental and social risk in project financing. It is primarily intended to provide a minimum standard for due diligence tosupport responsible risk decision-making.

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Highlights

Embedding human rights due diligence
into our financing approachSocial considerations are a fundamental aspect of ouroverall ESG risk assessment process. Among others,
the following social related issues are considered in our
financing decisions: 1) forced and child labour; 2) worker
rights, including fair wages, reasonable working hours, safe
working conditions, as well as freedom of association andcollective bargaining; and 3) community rights, including
cultural, land and resource related rights.
We conduct ESG risk assessments as part of all new
credit applications, annual credit reviews, or in the event
there are negative ESG news or reports regarding ourcustomers. Our ESG risk assessments are carried out using
the ERQ, which was developed based on the profile of ourinstitutional customer segments and referenced to our
Sector Guides.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

As a signatory to the Equator Principles (EP)(5), for in-scope
project-related finance transactions, we apply the risk
identification, assessment, management, and reporting
requirements of the principles to eligible projects. Humanrights requirements, such as environmental and social
assessment, stakeholder engagement and the grievancemechanism are specifically outlined in Principles 2, 5
and 6 respectively.
Where a project has the potential to cause adverse
human rights impacts, an assessment of such impacts
shall be conducted.

We conduct our own internal review of project
documentation during the due diligence and monitoring
phases, and for higher risk projects an independent
consultant will be appointed to conduct the due diligenceprocess on behalf of the bank. An action plan may also be
negotiated with the borrower to address gaps identified andIn 2023, we further enhanced the ERQ, which alreadyensure compliance with the EP requirements. In addition tocovered social risks, to specifically assess our customers on environmental issues, critical human rights issues and thehuman rights issues including forced labour, child labour,
tracking of any required remediation are embedded
labour practices and community rights. We also enhanced in our due diligence and post-transaction monitoring.
Read more about our reporting on the Equator Principles on page 36, anda supporting document to provide RMs and CRMs withmore about our approach to human rights due diligence on page 13.
more detailed guidance on assessing human rights risks.
These updates will be rolled-out in 2024.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Establishing Environmental and Social IncidentManagement Guide
Adverse environmental and social impacts that occur within
our value chain pose a substantial risk to the bank andimpacting the credit profile of our customers and the bank's
reputation. With rising awareness of environmental andsocial issues amongst our stakeholders and strengthening
legal frameworks, we anticipate a corresponding risein queries, complaints and legal action related toenvironmental and social issues in Asia, as they have inother parts of the world.
In 2023 we developed an Environmental and Social (E&S)
Incident Management Guide. The guide sets out a protocol
for managing E&S Incidents, complementing existing
internal DBS controls. An E&S incident is defined as an eventwith actual or potential adverse environmental or social
impacts caused by DBS Group's operations, products orservices. It applies to all units, branches and subsidiaries
within the DBS Group. The E&S Incident Management Guide
formalises our approach to E&S incidents, to maintainconsistency across the bank and ensure timely andappropriate response.

Stress testing and climate scenario analysis
Climate change has the potential to impact our customers’
future credit worthiness, as well as the financial stability ofthe broader economy. At DBS, we recognise the importanceof climate scenario analysis as a vital tool to assess climaterelated risks and opportunities, as well as elucidate thepotential implications of climate change for our strategy andbusiness model over the short-, medium- and long-term.
One of our priorities under our climate strategy is tointegrate climate considerations into our risk management
processes to ensure the short, medium and long-term
resiliency of our business. In 2023, we further strengthened
our climate and ESG risk management capabilities throughthe development of a centralised data repository for more
effective and efficient data and analytics.

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Our approach to climate scenario analysis includes:
Transition risk analysis is conducted using a suite of
Climate Scenario Analysis (CSA) models. The CSA translates
the effects of policy and regulation changes, technology
development and changes in consumer preferences, as
defined by a set of standard climate scenarios, into impact
to key financial drivers identified for each sector. In 2023, we
further refined our models to include the latest Network forGreening the Financial System (NGFS) scenarios.
To date, we have conducted transition risk scenario analyses
for our nine priority sectors, selected based on theirsignificance within the IBG portfolio and carbon emissions
contribution. These include Power, Oil & Gas, Automotive,
Aviation, Shipping, Real Estate, Steel, Chemicals, as well as
Food & Agribusiness. Looking ahead, we will continue tosystematically deploy scenario analysis models to enhance
our risk management processes.
Physical risks analysis is conducted through forwardlooking models that assess the physical effects of climatechange on our clients’ assets and operations over the short,medium and long-term, based on scenarios from theIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Shared
Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs). In our analysis, we consider:• A cute risks resulting from increased severity of extreme
weather events such as cyclones, droughts and floods.
• Chronic risks resulting from longer-term shifts inprecipitation and temperature, increased variability inweather patterns, or rise in sea levels.
In 2023, we enhanced geo-location data coverage for our
portfolio and expanded our climate physical risk assessment
to cover more hazards (e.g., tropical cyclones, flooding,among others). We also commenced a pilot study in the Real
Estate sector to further refine our approach to assessing
climate-related physical risk across our portfolios. We arealso in the process of expanding the assessment of physicalrisk on other credit exposures within the nine priority sectors.
Read more about our methodologies to climate scenario analysis modellingon page 105.

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CEO Message

Highlights

Summary of our climate scenario
analysis in the Real Estate sector
In 2023, we further expanded our pilot to assess theclimate-related transition risks and physical risks in the Real
Estate sector. This sector was chosen for our pilot due to
its materiality to the bank’s portfolio and the connection
between transition risk and physical risk on this physicalasset-based sector.
This pilot assessment allows us to gain a better
understanding on data challenges, as well as obtain
additional insights into our portfolio as we continue
to enhance our methodology. We aim to expand ourassessment to other markets and sectors, as well as ourcollateral base. We will also continue to invest in improving
data gathering methods and data quality to better assess
exposure to physical risk.
Transition Risk
The sector comprises real estate operators, property
developers and investment managers, and is characterised

Approach

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

by its relatively low emissions intensity compared with otherpriority sectors during its operational phase. It should be
noted that emissions embodied in building materials could
contribute considerably to climate change. However, data
availability continues to be a limitation.
Based on the NGFS Net Zero scenario, climate transition
risk to the real estate sector was assessed to be immaterial.
Given the generally low emission intensities in all scopesof emissions as reported by our customers at baselinecompared to other priority sectors, the proportion ofcarbon costs is likely to be relatively low as compared to thetotal operating costs, resulting in minimal financial impacts
arising from climate transition risk.
Physical Risk
Physical risks can impact the financial strength of ourborrowers through damage to property and disruption tooperations. We analysed our Real Estate portfolio with theirunderlying property assets to understand the potential
impact our borrowers may face.
Singapore
Initial insights show that
there is minimal impact
from coastal and fluvial
flooding to our borrowers’
portfolios, on a 2050-time
horizon.

Figure 2: Heatmap of assets in Singapore, showing physical risk levels fromcoastal/ fluvial flooding

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

We leveraged on data from an external data provider for
the forward-looking hazard assessments based on futureclimate change scenarios; Representative Concentration
Pathways and Shared Socioeconomic Pathways, developedby the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
We selected a High Climate Change Scenario (SSP(6)5 – 8.5), which is the low mitigation scenario in which total
greenhouse gas emissions triple by 2075 and global averagetemperatures rise by 3.3 – 5.7°C by 2100, overa 2050-time horizon.
We focused on the respective geographical locations thatare material to our portfolio and the corresponding hazards
as follow:(a) Flooding (coastal and fluvial) for assets
in Singapore (Figure 2)(b) Tropical Cyclones for assets in Hong Kong (Figure 3)

Hong Kong
The analysis showed thatmost properties in ourborrower’s properties will
face minimal impact bytropical cyclones, with animmaterial exposure toborrowers with properties
facing moderate physicalrisk by 2050.

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Upskilling and empowering our people
Achieving our net zero targets and managing climate risks
require continual upskilling and reskilling, especially for our
frontline RMs and second line CRMs.
Since 2018, we have rolled out mandatory Responsible
Financing e-Learning training to all RMs and CRMs to
ensure alignment with our ESG policies and standards.
Newly hired RMs and CRMs are assigned this training
during onboarding, while a refresher training is assigned
to existing colleagues every two years. Amongst RMs and
CRMs assigned to this mandatory training in 2023, 87% hadcompleted the training as of October 2023(7). We also helda series of green and sustainable trade financing trainings
for RMs to learn how to identify relevant opportunities andprovide advisory and financial solutions to better support
our customers.
In parallel to establishing our net zero targets in 2022, we
also developed an inaugural Climate-Activation Trainingthat was progressively rolled out in the first half of 2023
for over 1,800 RMs and CRMs to empower them with
the necessary climate-related knowledge to meaningfully
engage customers in their decarbonisation and transition
journeys.
In the latter half of 2023, we designed industry-specific“clinic sessions” to ensure our colleagues are able toapply the knowledge from the climate activation training
effectively. These sessions serve as a platform for ourcolleagues to delve deeper into climate-related concerns
specific to their industry, utilise live cases for practicallearning and explore effective approaches to engage
customers.

Figure 3: Heatmap of assets in Hong Kong, showing physical risk levels fromtropical cyclones(6)	Shared Socio-economic pathway (SSPs) are climate change scenarios of projected socioeconomic global changes up to 2100 as defined by Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
(7)	This refers to the number of employees assigned the Responsible Financing e-Learning training within 2023 only. Please note that if employees are reassigned the training towards the end of the year, they are not required to complete
it till early part of the following year.

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Metrics and targets

Figure 4: Summary of our decarbonisation and data coverage performance against targets set for our nine priority sectors.

Net zero portfolio alignment

Power

234

229

200

On track

(8)

150
100

Absolute ﬁnanced emissions (MtCO2e)

260

250

50

0.14

DBS portfolio 2023 position

28.9(9)

30

26.2

25

On track

20
15
10

2020

2030

2040

2050

(8)	Adjusted upwards from 227 kgCO2/MWh to include
Integrated Power Producers (IPP) and calculation method
refined for conglomerates & IPPs to reasonably approximate
the contribution of our financing of in-scope businesses.

2020

2030

2040

0.08
0.06

300%

DBS portfolio 2022 position
DBS portfolio 2023 position

0.35
0.30
0.25

On track

0.20
0.152

0.15
0.10

0.086

1.5

Almoston track
1.0

200%

100%

0
2030

2050

2040

(10)	Since the shift to using WLTP in 2022, our initial NEDC baseline
figure is no longer used. The glidepath has been adjusted toreflect the WLTP approach.
(11)	Baseline has been adjusted to 2022’s results based on the
WLTP approach

Shipping

Respective asset’s emissions
intensity is outperforming
its relevant pathway

60

2022: -11.0%
2023: -17.8%

On track

40
20

2020

2030

2040

2050

Food &
Agribusiness

66%

Data coverage(% large corporate clients
reporting emissions
and physical output)

On track

360

Baseline: -14.0%

0

0.05

DBS portfolio 2023 position

0.5

2020

2050

(9)	Adjustment of 2022 results downwards from 35.6 MtCO2e.
Enterprise Value and emissions data was updated.

Baseline position

On track

0.10

0IATA Fly Net Zero

0.389

DBS portfolio 2022 position

0.02

Respective asset’s emissions
intensity is underperforming
its relevant pathway

0.40

0.117(11)
0.111

0.04

Real Estate

Aviation

1.95

Baseline position

1.95

DBS portfolio 2023 position

0.12

0

-50

MPP – Tech Moratorium

1.99

2.0

DBS portfolio 2022
(Baseline position)

DBS portfolio 2022 position

50

IEA NZE

0.16

Baseline position

35

DBS portfolio 2023 position

300

38.6

Emissions intensity (kgCO2 /v-km)

DBS portfolio 2022 position

350
Emission Intensity (kgCO2 /MWh)40

Baseline position

400

IEA NZECONTENTS

Steel

Automotive(10)Alignment delta (%)

The summary of our decarbonisation performance on
the right tracks the annual variance against the scienceinformed decarbonisation pathways we have chosen to
guide us towards our interim 2030 targets and net zero
2050 targets for each of our priority sectors (Figure 4). We
have observed good emissions reduction progress in fiveout of seven sectors, and they track well against the relevantscience-informed decarbonisation pathways. However, we
recognise that in very hard-to-abate sectors, such as Steel(almost on track) and Shipping (not on track), there are
dependencies and structural challenges that require longterm changes. Addressing these will often need broader
ecosystem partnerships across the public and private
sectors. We remain committed to working with our clientsand fostering partnerships to enable an economy-wide
transition to net zero that is orderly and just.

IEA NZE

Alignment delta (%)

Table 1 summarises the coverage of our priority sectors for
our Scope 3 financed emissions, reference scenarios and2050 targets, while Table 2 outlines our latest position for
the reporting year 2023.

450

Emissions intensity (kgCO2 /p-km)

To fulfil our commitment as a signatory to the NZBA, we
are committed to monitoring and reporting our progressagainst our sectoral targets annually. In September 2022,
we established two sets of targets. The first set consistsof seven Scope 3 emissions reduction targets, while thesecond set is made up of two data coverage targets.
Collectively, our commitment covers a total of nine priority
sectors (Power, Oil & Gas (O&G), Automotive, Aviation,
Shipping, Steel, Real Estate, Food & Agribusiness (F&A)
and Chemicals). Altogether, these nine priority sectors arerecognised as some of the most carbon-intensive sectors in
the real economy and collectively account for a majority of
global GHG emissions.

Oil & Gas

Additional Disclosures

Emissions intensity (kgCO2e/kg)

CEO Message

51%
45%

31%

Respective asset’s emissions
intensity is underperforming
its relevant pathway

Not ontrack

Respective asset’s emissions
intensity is outperforming
its relevant pathway

Baseline

Baseline: -11.8%

Chemicals

2022: +5.4%

Data coverage(% large corporateclients r eporting emissions
and physical output)

2023: +15.6%

2022

2023

2030
66%

55%

45%

47%

0
-20

On track

-40
0
2020

2030

2040

2050

-100%

-60
Baseline

2022

2023

From Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

2030

25

CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Table 1: Summary of our 2050 net zero financed emissions and data coverage targets set for our nine priority sectors

Table 2: Summary of our 2023 financed emissions and data coverage results

SectorSub-sectors & typesof financings included

Emission scopes
includedReferencescenario

Targetmetric2050 target(reduction vs.
baseline)

SectorTarget metric2021 Baseline(and reference start-point)

2022

2023

2030 target(reduction vs.
baseline)Power• Power generation• Power equipment manufacturers• Scope 1 (generation)• Scope 3 (equipment)

IEA NZE

Emissions intensity(kgCO2/MWh)0(-100%)

Power

Emissions intensity (kgCO2/MWh)

260 (438)

229(12)234

138 (-47%)• Upstream• Downstream• Integrated• Scope 1-3

IEA NZE

Absolute financed
emissions (MtCO2e)3.0(-92%)

Oil & Gas

Absolute financed emissions (MtCO2e) 38.6 (N/A)

28.9(13)

26.2

27.7 (-28%)

Automotive

Emissions intensity (kgCO2/vehicle-km) 2022: 0.117 (0.123)(14)

0.117

0.111

0.052 (-57%)

Steel

Emissions intensity (kgCO2e/kg)

1.95 (1.90)

1.99

1.95

1.42 (-27%)

Aviation

Emissions intensity (kgCO2/p-km)

2020: 0.389 (0.191)
2019: 0.088 (0.107)(15)

0.152

0.086

0.074 (-16%)

Real Estate

Alignment delta (%)-14.0%-11.0%-17.8%≤0% (-42%)

Shipping

Alignment delta (%)-11.8%+5.4%+15.6%≤0% (-23%)

Food &
Agribusiness

Data coverage (% large corporateclients reporting emissions andphysical output)

31% (N/A)

45%

51%

≥66%

Chemicals

Data coverage (% large corporateclients reporting emissions andphysical output)

45% (N/A)

47%

55%

≥66%

Oil & Gas

Automotive

Steel

Aviation

Real Estate

Shipping• Automotive OEMS
• Scope 3 (tailpipe• Captive automotive finance companies emissions of• Automotive distributors
passenger vehicles)• Dedicated powertrain manufacturers

IEA NZE• Steel production

Mission Possible
Partnership – Tech
Moratorium Scenario

Emissions intensity(kgCO2e/kg)

0.14(-93%)• Scope 1 for airlines and IATA Fly Net Zerosecured aircraft financing (-100%)• Scope 3 for aircraft leasing
companies

Emissions intensity(kgCO2/p-km)

0(-100%)• Airlines• Aircraft leasing companies• Secured aircraft financing• Scope 1-2

Emissions intensity(kgCO2/vehicle-km)

0(-100%)• Real estate owner-operators• Scope 1-2• Real estate special purpose vehicles(operating emissions)• Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)

Carbon Risk Real
Estate Monitor –Global Decarbonisation Pathways

Alignmentdelta (%)

≤0%(-95%)• Secured vessel financing

International
Alignment
Maritimedelta (%)
Organisation –Poseidon Principles≤0%(-71%)• Scope 1

Food &
Agribusiness• Primary growers, producers
N/Aand processors• Integrated agribusiness companies• Food and beverage manufacturers• Food retail• Animal protein and feed producers

N/A

Data coverage (%N/Alarge corporate clients
reporting emissions
and physical output)

Chemicals• Petrochemicals
N/A• Commodity & diversified Chemicals• Industrial gases• Specialty chemicals• Fertilisers & agrichemicals

N/A

Data coverage (%N/Alarge corporate clients
reporting emissions
and physical output)

In 2023, our total in-scope(16) nine priority sectors (Power,
O&G, Automotive, Steel, Aviation, Real Estate, Shipping, Food
& Agribusiness and Chemicals) represent 31% of the IBG
loan book (loans and loan equivalents).
As climate-related reporting practices are rapidly evolving,
we acknowledge the need to revise our estimates andassumptions, which may lead to restatements. In ourannual stocktake of emissions performance to demonstrate
our progression towards interim 2030 and 2050 net zerotargets, we have utilised a range of data sources, reference
scenarios and methodologies. Our reporting will align tobest practices as data quality continues to improve andbecome more granular, while reference scenarios andmethodologies are continually refined.
In our 2023 financed emissions update, we have not yet
considered the PCAF guidance on facilitated emissions, as it
was published in December 2023. Therefore, we maintained
the methodology for ECM and DCM underwritings in thisround of updates. We calculated our attributable Scope
3 financed emissions by taking the full amount that DBS
underwrote for a period of one year after the issuance,
which differs from the latest PCAF guidance of accounting
for only one-third of the underwriting amount.

(12) Adjusted upwards from 227 kgCO2 /MWh. Please see more details in the Power sector.
(13) Adjustment of 2022 results downwards from 35.6 MtCO2e. Please see more details in the Oil & Gas sector.
(14) Both baseline and glidepath have been adjusted to 2022’s results based on the WLTP approach(15) 2019 data is used as reference start-point for the Aviation sector. As IATA Fly Net Zero does not have data for 2019, the IEA NZE was used as reference instead.
(16)	In-scope sectors included in our financed emission calculations refer to the sub-sectors and types of financings that apply only to relevant value chainsof the respective sectors due to the different nature of activities.
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CEO Message

Highlights

ApproachPowertypically generate higher emissions intensity compared tocorporates that solely invest in power generation assets.
The marginal increase in our recalculated 2022 emission
intensity to 229 kgCO2 /MWh (from 227 kgCO2 /MWhoriginally) stems from this expansion of in-scope customers.

450

IEA NZE
Baseline position

400

DBS portfolio 2022 position
DBS portfolio 2023 position

Emission Intensity (kgCO2 /MWh)

350
300

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

260

250
200

234

229

On track

(8)

150
100
50
0
-50
2020

2030

2040

2050

Decarbonising the Power sector is critical for the global
economy to achieve net zero by 2050. At DBS, we are committed
to decarbonising our Power sector and achieving net zero by2040. We continue to help our clients chart their own pathways
and make progress towards our interim 2030 targets.
2023 performance
To further improve the coverage of our target, we expanded
our in-scope customers in 2023 by adding a new category,“Integrated Power Producers”. With this new category,
we further refined our methodology to more accuratelyreflect the nature of business for some of our customers,
including those that were previously out of scope, such as
customers categorised under transmission and distribution.
As vertically integrated power players are active throughout
the entire electricity value chain, customers in this category

After the aforementioned expansion of in-scope customers,
the final 2023 emissions intensity result shows a marginalincrease to 234 kgCO2 /MWh (from 229 kgCO2 /MWh in2022). This increase is a result of expanding the in-scope
clients to include critical power and utility players that
contribute to energy security within the APAC region. Under
the original methodology, the 2023 emissions intensity
result for the Power sector would have shown a decrease to
226 kgCO2 /MWh (from 227 kgCO2 /MWh originally in 2022).
Although the emissions intensity for the Power sector
increased marginally from 2022, we expanded our client
coverage and product expertise within the renewables
space (as further elaborated on how we are managing
our Renewable Energy Portfolio on the right). As a result,the overall performance for the Power sector remains in a
downward trajectory, with a decrease of approximately 10%
since the baseline. We are pleased to report that our 2023
financed emissions for the Power sector remain significantly
below the IEA NZE reference scenario of 378 kgCO2 /MWhfor the same year.
Challenges and opportunities
While we continue to grow our Renewable Energy Portfolio
and phase out thermal coal financing, DBS also recognises
the importance of energy security in the region. Several
ASEAN countries have announced ambitious targets toreach carbon neutrality. However, they continue to facechallenges in deploying the capital required to build up grid
infrastructure and scale up a stable supply of renewableenergy. As such, some countries may still need to rely on
conventional power sources, such as gas, to provide a stablebaseload supply of power and minimise any disruptions toeconomic activities.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

The transition for the Power sector depends not only on
financial institutions but also on governmental policies
and support, as well as technological advancements toimprove commercial viability. Changes in legislation andpolicies would be required, including increased regional
cooperation, to (i) drive more resources towards quicker
deployment of low-carbon technologies and (ii) attract more
capital from foreign investors and financial institutions.
DBS is also collaborating with the Indonesia Investment
Authority (INA) on their Energy Transition Mechanism forthe early retirement of thermal coal plants. While we are
already working on a potential pilot financing transaction,
we recognise that the MPO of coal-fired power plants isstill in its early stages in the market. The scalability of suchfinancing will take time, given multiple factors to consider
and stakeholders to engage.
Read more on how we are providing innovative financing solutions on page19, and our approach to phase out thermal coal financing on page 22.

Next steps
We have been engaging with clients to encourage theadoption of lower-carbon fuel mix for power generationand to explore areas that DBS can support them beyond
financing. Examples include providing ESG and financial
advisory services, as well as forming strategic partnerships
with equipment or digital solution providers, to bettersupport their transition efforts.
By utilising our in-house developed analytics tools, we will
be able to monitor and simulate potential emissions trends
based on different economic and environmental scenarios.
This will help us to better understand our clients’ needs andadvise them on the various available transition and financing
solutions that are suitable for their consideration.
The Power sector’s financed emissions reduction is on track
to meet our 2030 target and has been performing below

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

the IEA NZE reference scenario. We are encouraged by the
progress made to date, but there is still much work to bedone to continue this trajectory. We remain committed tosupporting our clients in the Power sector in their efforts toachieve net zero by 2040, which is crucial in decarbonising
the other industry sectors to achieve net zero by 2050.
Managing our Renewable Energy Portfolio
Our renewable energy financing increased from over
SGD 7 billion in 2022 to SGD 10 billion in 2023. This growth
was driven by new loans granted to our key clients acrossthe markets we operate in. Examples of our renewableenergy financing activities include a first-of-its-kindsolar project financing in Bangladesh for a Chinese-led
consortium and advising and arranging the financing fora Singaporean energy client acquiring renewable energy
assets in Vietnam.
Our Power sector’s overall positive performance can be
attributed to two factors: (i) our efforts to systematicallysupport our clients as they build or acquire more
renewable energy assets and (ii) our focus on advisingand supporting our clients in their transition journey as
they pivot towards low-carbon technology and solutions.
As part of our ongoing efforts to drive decarbonisationin the real economy, we are collaborating with various
governmental agencies and power industry players
to facilitate a just transition in the MPO of coal-fired
power plants.
In line with our commitment set in 2018 to progressively
phase out both thermal coal power and mining financing
by 2039, our exposure to thermal coal in 2023 was
SGD 1.8 billion. This represents a decrease from
SGD 2.2 billion in the previous year and SGD 2.7 billion
the year before.

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Oil & Gas (O&G)

40

business activities, as well as lower drawdowns under
existing committed facilities. Our financed emissions
and methodological choices are also influenced by theavailability of customer data and are subject to refinement
when data quality improves(17).
IEA NZE

38.6

Baseline position
DBS portfolio 2022 position

35
Absolute ﬁnanced emissions (MtCO2e)

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

DBS portfolio 2023 position

28.9

(9)

30

26.2

25

On track

20
15
10
5
0
2020

2030

2040

2050

2023 performance
The absolute financed emissions for our O&G sector
decreased year-on-year and now stands at 26.2 MtCO2e,
reflecting a steady decline towards our interim 2030 and
2050 net zero targets. Our 2023 emissions also remain below
the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) Net Zero Emissions
by 2050 (NZE) reference scenario for the same year.
During the year, our outstanding exposure to the entire
in-scope O&G portfolio decreased by about 10%. Thisdecrease was attributed to several factors, including theintentional reduction of our overall exposure to O&G

Challenges and opportunities
One of the key drivers to significantly accelerate thedecarbonisation of the O&G sector and meet the
1.5⁰C-aligned 2030 and 2050 net zero targets is to ensure
substantial emissions reductions across the entire value
chain (Scopes 1, 2 and 3) through the adoption of newenergy and technologies. Consequently, many O&G
companies are increasingly exploring and harnessing
the potential of low-carbon fuel alternatives (such as
biofuels, green hydrogen, green ammonia and theirrelated derivatives), and exploring the application of
Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) solutions
to conventional fossil fuel-based processes. However,widespread adoption of these alternatives remains limited
today, partly due to the challenges of large-scale commercial
adoption driven by factors such as affordability, feedstock
availability and scalability issues, among others.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Furthermore, we recognise the key limitations in the current
approach in quantifying our absolute financed emissions for
the O&G sector. In line with the Partnership for Carbon
Accounting Financials (PCAF), the absolute financed emissions
per client attributable to our O&G sector is calculated by
dividing our financing to the client by the client’s company
value and then multiplying by the client’s emissions:
Financed=
EmissionsC

Outstanding Amountc
Companyx
Emissionsc
Company Valuec

DBS, along with many other banks, uses this PCAF
methodology to calculate absolute financed emissions.
As methodologies evolve, we will continue to review andreassess our approach accordingly.

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Next steps
Our O&G sector’s absolute financed emissions aretracking well against our interim 2030 target. While weare encouraged by the progress made to date, we remain
cautious and mindful that much more needs to be done tocontinue this trajectory.
By utilising our in-house developed analytics tools, we will
be able to monitor and simulate potential emissions trends
based on different economic and environmental scenarios.
This will enable us to better understand our clients’ needs andadvise them on the various available transition and financing
solutions suitable for their consideration.

That said, DBS is committed to our goals to drive transitionin our O&G portfolio. We will continually and proactively
engage our clients to explore low-carbon fuel alternatives
solutions in our region, with the aim of developing
innovative structuring solutions to enhance the bankability
and scalability of such opportunities. However, financial
institutions cannot achieve this alone. Governmental policy
support and intervention will play a critical role in the
decarbonisation of the O&G Sector.
Read more about our Industry & policy engagement on page 18 to accelerate
our climate agenda.

(17)	As part of our ongoing data refinement process these improvements have led to a recalculation of our emissions for the previous year, 2022,
from 35.6 MtCO2e to 28.9 MtCO2e.

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Automotive

IEA NZE

0.16

DBS portfolio 2022
(Baseline position)

Emissions intensity (kgCO2 /v-km)

0.14

DBS portfolio 2023 position

0.10

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

border trade flows across major markets. For example, we
financed the gigafactory of a key Asian client into Hungary
in 2023 to support the European EV demand as well as thetrade financing associated with the battery flows from China
and Korea to Europe and the United States. We expect tosee such investments increase in our core markets, such as
India and Indonesia, where governments are announcing
commitments to decarbonise the transport sector.
We believe that these efforts will have a positive impact
on our financed emissions over time as more internal
combustion engine (ICE) vehicles are replaced. As we
progress towards our interim 2030 and net zero 2050
targets, the pace of electrification will be a key considerationthat is dependent on several critical factors:

0.117(11)
0.111

0.12

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

On track

0.08
0.06

• P
 rice parity of EVs vs ICEs, which largely depends onbattery pack prices;• Accelerated rollout of more affordable EV models globally;• Development of comprehensive charging infrastructure;and/ or• Government and policy support.

0.04
0.02
0
2020

2030

2040

2050

2023 performanceOur 2023 emissions intensity result for the Automotive
sector has improved to 0.111 kgCO2/v-km, down from0.117 kgCO2/v-km in 2022. It remains below the reference
scenario of 0.114 kgCO2/v-km(18). This reduction in our
portfolio emissions intensity can be attributed to increased
financing activities across the electric vehicle (EV) value
chain and efforts undertaken by our Automotive clients intransitioning towards EVs in response to growing demand.
Challenges and opportunities
DBS continues to support the industry’s transition toelectrification by financing large gigafactories and cross-

Next steps
Geopolitics and industry-related factors could impact thepace of electrification in the short-term. However, thelonger-term direction for the Automotive industry is towards
an electrified future. DBS remains committed to supporting
our clients in their efforts towards a net zero pathway forthemselves and the broader sector.
We will continue to engage with our top-emitting clients andsupport them in achieving decarbonisation by providing
advisory services and financing for their pipeline of investments.
Additionally, as we seek to further increase our financing
across the EV value chain, we will also seek to engage withmore clients to understand where they are on their net zerojourney and what their financing needs may be.

(18)	In 2022, we increased the robustness of our emissions calculations for the Automotive Sector through methodology updates. Among these updates, thebiggest impact has been the change from the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) to Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP) as thestandard of measurement for emissions intensity. The industry has recognised WLTP as a more robust measurement with longer driving cycle which is
closer to actual driving conditions. As a result, emissions intensity measurements are generally higher under WLTP compared to NEDC. Using the WLTP
approach results in greater pressure to reach our interim 2030 emissions intensity target. Nonetheless, we have opted to stay committed to achieving
the target we initially set.

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Aviation

0.40

IATA Fly Net Zero
Baseline position

0.389

DBS portfolio 2022 position
DBS portfolio 2023 position

Emissions intensity (kgCO2 /p-km)

0.35
0.30

On track

0.25
0.20
0.152

0.15
0.10

0.086

0.05
0
2020

2030

2040

2050

2023 performanceOur 2023 emissions intensity result for the Aviation sector
is 0.086 kgCO2/p-km, a significant improvement from
0.152 kgCO2/p-km in 2022. Our portfolio position is also
within the reference scenario and is on track to meeting ourinterim 2030 target.
This performance was driven primarily by the increase inpassenger load factor for airline clients from 2022 to 2023,
as countries lifted travel restrictions and the demand forinternational air travel recovered almost back to pre-COVID(2019) levels.

(19) IATA Net Zero Roadmaps Executive Summary (June 2023)

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Challenges and opportunities
Airlines remain heavily dependent on fossil fuels, with the
majority of emissions in the Aviation sector coming fromfuel burned during flight. To ensure that our portfolio isable to meet the IATA Fly Net Zero trajectory, our strategy
includes supporting our clients’ financing needs in theirre-fleeting exercise and facilitating their adoption ofsustainable aviation fuels (SAF). However, these drivers for
decarbonisation pose several challenges.
Aircraft have a long useful life and can remain in service
for 20 – 30 years(19). Fleet renewal to more efficient aircraft
could span many years even when newer aircraft models
have been introduced. This is compounded by the factthat aircraft have lengthy development times(19). For
example, the time taken to research and develop a new
aircraft model incorporating the latest technology andobtaining airworthiness certificates could take up to 10
years. Furthermore, limited supply and the high cost of SAF
often make it less economical for use by operators vis-àvis conventional jet fuel, resulting in lower quantity usedcompared to what the decarbonisation trajectory requires.
Next steps
We will continue to engage with our clients on theirtransition plans and support them through:• Financing their re-fleeting to more fuel efficient aircraft;• Facilitating the adoption of SAF, including working withour clients and other stakeholders across the Aviation
value chain;• Financing investments in novel aviation technologies,
as they come to market (likely post 2030); and/ or• Helping clients to access high-quality offsets for theirresidual emissions after other decarbonisation efforts
are exhausted.

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Highlights

Approach

Shipping

360

Alignment delta (%)

60
40

Respective asset’s emissions
intensity is underperforming
its relevant pathway
Respective asset’s emissions
intensity is outperforming
its relevant pathway

Not ontrack

Baseline: -11.8%
2022: +5.4%
2023: +15.6%

20
0
-20
-40
-60

2023 performance
The 2023 International Maritime Organisation (IMO) GHG
Strategy(20) on the reduction of GHG emissions from ships
highlighted the increased ambitions to achieve net zero
emissions from international shipping “by or around”
2050. To this end, we will evaluate our financed emissions
assessment parameters for our Shipping sector against thisnew benchmark.
In 2023, we continue to report our performance against
the Poseidon Principles trajectory that is aligned with the2018 IMO GHG Strategy. This, in turn, is based on a 50%
reduction in emissions in 2050 compared to 2008 levels,
which we refer to as the 50% CO2 reduction trajectory.
The 2023 Alignment Delta (AD) of our Shipping sector
widened from the 50% CO2 reduction trajectory, with a higheralignment score of +15.6% compared to +5.4% in 2022.
(20) 2023 IMO Strategy on Reduction of GHG Emissions from Ships

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTSThis was primarily due to additional drawdowns on facilities
used to finance shuttle tankers. These facilities were alreadycommitted before DBS set its sectoral decarbonisation targets,
which were announced in September 2022. Notably, the shuttle
tankers segment is disadvantaged regarding the computationof the AD due to the nature of their trade patterns andoperational requirements, which consequently led to an
outsized contribution to a higher alignment score. If we
exclude the shuttle tankers segment entirely, our Shipping
portfolio would align with the 50% CO2 reduction trajectory.
Challenges and opportunities
Shipping is a hard-to-abate sector. The key decarbonisation
drivers include:• higher vessel efficiency and• adoption of low-carbon fuels.
Examples of low-carbon fuels, such as clean ammonia, cleanhydrogen, clean methanol and biofuels, offer promisingalternatives to existing maritime fuels. However, there aretrade-offs associated with each of these alternatives, andnone has emerged as the clear dominant fuel for the sector
going forward.
The higher cost of investments in more efficient ships andequipment, along with the uncertainties around the
supply and cost of lower-carbon emitting fuels, are someof the ongoing challenges that ship owners face today. In
addition, the prevailing uncertainties relating to regulations,
technologies, and passthrough of costs continue toundermine the pace of transition.
Next steps
Achieving decarbonisation in the Shipping sector would
require medium to longer-term strategies. We will continue
to engage with our clients on their transition journeyand help facilitate the adoption of lower-carbon emitting
technologies and fuels. Furthermore, we will need to direct
our financing toward more efficient ships to improve ourportfolio’s alignment score.
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Highlights

Approach

Steel

MPP – Tech Moratorium

1.99

2.0

1.95

Baseline position

1.95

DBS portfolio 2022 position

Emissions intensity (kgCO2e/kg)

DBS portfolio 2023 position

Almoston track

1.5

1.0

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

In 2023, our emissions intensity result for the Steel sector
improved to 1.95 kgCO2e/kg steel, compared to 1.99 kgCO2e/kg
steel in the previous year. This is marginally above thereference scenario determined under the Mission Possible
Partnership’s Tech Moratorium scenario (1.83 kgCO2e/kg steel).
Our 2023 performance has excluded upstream mining
companies of iron ore and metallurgical coal from afinancier's Scope 3 emissions, which is in line with the
Sustainable STEEL Principles (SSP) and practices of ourpeer banks. If we had retained the original scope to include
the upstream mining companies, our portfolio's financed
emissions would have been 1.97 kgCO2e/kg steel.
The actual pace of decarbonisation in the Steel sector isslower than anticipated and we will need to strike a balance
between honouring our existing commitments to clients andapproaching our net zero goal.

0.5

0
2020

2030

2040

2050

2023 performance
The Steel industry is one of the largest contributors of global
emissions, accounting for about 7% of global emissions(21).
There are two primary technologies used in current steel
production: the Blast Furnace – Basic Oxygen Furnace (BFBOF) and the scrap-based Electric Arc Furnace (EAF). The
BF-BOF technology is a carbon intensive integrated processof iron smelted in a coal-fired blast furnace and refined into
steel in a basic oxygen furnace. It remains the predominant
method of steel production, accounting for 71%(22) of global
steel production and approximately 90% in Asia. In contrast,
the EAF uses primary raw materials such as steel scrap,
direct reduced iron (DRI) and/ or hot metal and electricity.
It is relatively less carbon intensive and accounts for theremaining 29% of global steel production(22).

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Challenges and opportunities
The capital expenditure requirements in the Steel industry
are significant. In particular, the long asset life makes itchallenging to adopt more sustainable technologies andinfrastructure in the short to medium term. To achieve thegoal of decarbonisation of the Steel sector, it will have to rely
heavily on electrification, which fundamentally requires achange in the way steel is produced, as well as a clean grid.
Despite our Steel portfolio being predominantly Asiacentric, the more carbon-intensive BF-BOF steel production
technology remains dominant – reflecting the global steel
production composition. Most of the production capacity
is relatively new and not due for retirement any time soon.
Furthermore, government policies and regulations in Asia todrive the EAF adoption lag behind those in more developed
markets. Coupled with the structural shortage of scrap

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

steel supply in Asia, the shift from BF-BOF to EAF has been
hindered by the lack of transparency in the current pricing
mechanism.
DBS will continue to incentivise our clients by extending
Sustainability-Linked Loans (SLL) by setting specific targets/covenants to bring down the client’s emission data. We will
also continue to fine-tune our client selection criteria to
focus on clients with lower carbon footprints and clearer
roadmaps for decarbonisation.
Next steps
We are assessing the feasibility of adopting a regionalreference scenario more suited to our clients’ profile andhost countries’ status of economic development, comparedto the global version used to date.

Nonetheless, improvements in the financed emissions of
our Steel sector can be attributed to our ongoing client
engagement efforts. These include financing the use ofhigher quality iron ores and fuel mix optimisation in theirpredominant BF-BOF technologies, recycling scrap to
produce secondary steel to gradually shift towards therelatively lower carbon-emitting EAF route, exploring the useof green hydrogen-based DRI production and developing
alternative technologies for Carbon Capture, Utilisation, andStorage (CCUS), among others.
In 2023, DBS has been increasingly focusing on extending
sustainable financing (such as Transition and Green Loans)to steel mills in Taiwan and India. We have also been providing
sustainable trade facilities and structuring digital solutions
for our Steel clients to issue Letters of Credit to International
Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) members. We believethese efforts will have a positive impact on the financed
emissions of our Steel sector over time as these get progressively
reflected into our client’s emissions data in the future.

(21)	Mission Possible Partnership – Net-Zero Steel Sector Transition Strategy (2021) https://www.energy-transitions.org/publications/the-net-zerosteel-sector-transition-strategy/(22) World Steel Association https://worldsteel.org/wp-content/uploads/worldsteel-book-final-2022-1.pdf

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Highlights

Approach

Real Estate

Respective asset’s emissions
intensity is outperforming
its relevant pathway

Alignment delta (%)

Baseline: -14.0%

200%

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

The 2023 AD of our Real Estate sector remains well below
the CRREM reference scenarios, reflecting our continual
efforts to maintaining our portfolio of sustainable buildings
across key markets.
Respective asset’s emissions
intensity is underperforming
its relevant pathway

300%

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

2022: -11.0%
2023: -17.8%

100%

0

-100%

2023 performance
In 2023, the overall portfolio performance of our clientsby Alignment Delta(23) (“AD”) is -17.8% below the CRREM
reference scenarios, demonstrating a lower alignment scorefrom -11.0% in 2022. The improvement is attributed to morecompanies adopting greater energy efficiency measures fortheir buildings’ operations and higher quality sustainability
reporting that adheres to the elevated disclosure standards
across the industry.

Challenges and opportunities
We continue to engage with property developers and realestate investment trusts (REITs) to encourage the reductionof emissions and we have observed a notable improvementin their commitment and initiatives to accelerate the processof decarbonisation.
Decarbonisation in the Real Estate sector is primarily
dependent on the grid and driven by adopting the highest
green certification standards, promoting renewableenergy generation and utilisation, and implementing
energy-efficient retrofits for buildings. Accessible, accurate
and automated building energy data is fundamental forunderstanding energy performance in decarbonisation
efforts. Scaling this across a complex mix of Real Estate
portfolio and facilities across different regions poses achallenge, which can usually be overcome with the support
and collaboration among governments, policymakers, andindustry participants.
Next steps
We will continue to engage with our clients and support
them in achieving decarbonisation by providing advisory
services and financing for their pipeline of investments.

(23)	This Alignment Delta (AD) measures how our clients, constituents in sectors made up of varying asset types and activities, compared to a rangeof diverse underlying benchmarks. Real estate, made up of commercial, residential, hospitality and other assets, is an important sector in our
Institutional Banking Group (IBG) portfolio. This AD method has allowed us to include a much wider range of property types and countries in ourReal Estate targets than what other banks have announced thus far.
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Food & Agribusiness (F&A)

Data Coverage (% large
corporate clients reporting
emissions and physicaloutput)

66%

51%
45%

31%

Baseline

2022

2023

2030

2023 performance
We remain focused on encouraging our corporate clients tomeasure, monitor and report their emissions and physicaloutput. In 2023, data coverage for our F&A sector increased
from 45% to 51%. We are encouraged by this improvement
and will continue to support clients who are in the earlier
stages of measuring and reporting emissions.
Challenges and opportunities
Tangible decarbonisation requires large-scale concerted
efforts from all stakeholders across the value chains fromprimary growers, producers, processers, transporters anddistributors to government and regulatory bodies.

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

There are currently limited supply-side decarbonisation
levers that can significantly reduce emissions from the highhigh-emitting segments of the value chain at a commercially
viable scale, while also meeting the growing demand forfood. Moreover, addressing land-use change related
emissions from farming is critical and requires government
policy support to incentivise smallholder farmers to adopt
environmentally friendly technologies. On the demand side,
shifting consumer behaviour towards more sustainable
diets also requires time.
Next steps
While good progress is being made towards achieving ourinterim data coverage target, it remains challenging to set asingle emissions reduction target for the entire F&A sector.
The sector is extremely diversified with emissions intensities
varying materially across different agricultural produce andsegments of the value chain. While there have been recent
developments in establishing decarbonisation pathways
including the Science Based Target initiative’s Forest, Land,
and Agriculture (FLAG) guidance, such pathways have notyet been widely adopted by the industry and do not cover
the entire F&A value chain.
We will keep abreast of industry developments and, in theabsence of a single emissions target for the entire sector,
will consider setting decarbonisation targets for material
sub-sectors within F&A once an industry consensus on theapplicable pathway emerges.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTSManaging our Palm Oil Portfolio
Within our F&A portfolio, DBS continues to monitor thesustainability performance of our palm oil customers(both existing and new) to assess their alignment with ourpolicies and standards, including our palm oil financing
policy. Our palm oil customers include those who have
either aligned with or have committed to working towards
aligning themselves to the principles of No Deforestation,
No Peat, No Exploitation (NDPE) and/ or the principles andcriteria of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO).
We continue to engage our palm oil customers on
addressing their sustainability challenges and support
them by progressively making their supply chains moresustainable, addressing community rights and having
better access to grievance mechanisms. Our RMs also
conduct site visits where possible to farms, plantations,
local communities, and processing facilities that wefinance. Where there are gaps identified in aligning with
our standards, the sustainability team, alongside the RM
and relevant credit teams will engage the customer toaddress them.
As of December 2023, our exposure to the Palm Oil sector
was SGD 1.1 billion (2022: SGD 1 billion), representing no
more than 0.2% of our total IBG exposure.

Thematic capacity building for RMs to keep abreast of industry developments
As the Agriculture, Food, and other Land Use (AFOLU) sector evolves, we are continually upskilling and reskilling ourRMs, including the relevant topical trends and related regulatory requirements, among others. For example, when theEuropean Deforestation-free Regulation was rolled out in July 2023, we ran an internal training session for RMs to stayabreast of its material business impacts for client engagement around their sustainable financing opportunities. In thesame year, we also organised a thematic workshop on sustainable protein transition that was conducted by industry
practitioners to upskill our RMs on industry developments.

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Highlights

ApproachChemicals

Data Coverage (% large
corporate clients reporting
emissions and physicaloutput)45%

Baseline

66%

55%
47%

2022

2023

2030

2023 performance
We remain focused on encouraging our corporate clients toquantify, monitor and report their emissions and physicaloutput. In 2023, data coverage for our Chemicals sector
increased from 47% to 55%. We are encouraged by thisimprovement and will continue to support clients who are in
the earlier stages of measuring and reporting emissions.

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Challenges and opportunities
Decarbonising the sector is challenging. In the nearterm, improvements will largely be driven by enhancing
process and resource efficiencies across the value chain,for example, by switching from coal to gas fuel for power.
In the longer term, nascent low-carbon technologies like
Green Hydrogen and CCUS can contribute to deeper GHG
reductions when they are available at a commercial scale.
However, the applicability and impact of decarbonisation
options will vary significantly across the wide spectrum ofchemicals. Strong regulatory and economic frameworks willremain crucial for emissions reduction in the industry.
Next steps
The Chemicals sector is extremely heterogenous; companies
often make a wide array of chemicals, each with different
levels of emissions intensities depending on the process
and use of the chemicals. While good progress is being
made towards achieving our interim data coverage target,
available sector reference scenarios (such as IEA NZE 2050)
vary significantly in their starting points and trajectories due
to varying inclusions across Scopes 1, 2 and 3 emissions
and the types of chemicals. Hence, it remains difficult to set
a single emissions reduction target for the entire Chemicals
sector.
We will keep abreast of industry developments and, in theabsence of a single emissions target for the entire sector,
will consider setting decarbonisation targets for material
sub-sectors within Chemicals once an industry consensus
on the applicable pathway emerges.

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Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Table 3: Project Finance Advisory Services mandated in 2023

Equator Principles reporting
Since becoming a signatory to the Equator Principles (EP)in November 2019, we have adopted a risk management
framework for determining, assessing, and managing
environmental and social risks in applicable transactions. We
review the outcomes from the environmental and social due
diligence processes to mitigate and manage any material
risks identified. In addition, training sessions are held for
RMs and CRMs on EP and how it is being implemented
across the bank including its workflow as part of ourenhanced process for ESG risk assessment.
(24)

In 2023, DBS was mandated to provide two Project Finance
Advisory Services in the Asia Pacific region (see Table 3).
Over the same period, a total of six transactions achieved
Financial Close(26), including one project-related corporateloan and five project finance transactions to which the
Equator Principles were applicable. Table 4 provides an
overview of these transactions. There are no applicable
Project-related Refinance which achieved Financial Closein 2023 (Table 5).

Number of Project Finance Advisory Services

SectorRegionCountry Designation(25)

2

Power

Asia Pacific

Non-Designated

Table 4: Equator Principles applicable Project Finance and Project-related Corporate Loans in 2023
Project Name

Financial ProductEastern Steel Phase I

SectorRegionCountry Designation Independent Categorisation(27)review

Project-related Corporate Loan Mining

Asia Pacific

Non-DesignatedYes

A

Hai Long

Project Finance

Power

Asia Pacific

Non-Designated

Yes

A

Project Orbit

Project Finance

Power

Asia Pacific

Non-Designated

Yes

B

Emerald 3

Project Finance

Power

Asia Pacific

Non-Designated

Yes

B

Project Panda

Project Finance

Power

Asia Pacific

Non-Designated

Yes

C

Project Zen

Project Finance

Power

Asia Pacific

Non-DesignatedYes

C

Table 5: Equator Principles-applicable Project-related Refinance in 2023
Project Name

Financial Product

SectorRegionCountry Designation Independent Categorisation
review

Not Applicable(24)	The Equator Principles (“EP”) is a voluntary environmental and social risk management framework, adopted by financial institutions, for determining,assessing, and managing environmental and social risk in project financing. It is primarily intended to provide a minimum standard for due diligence tosupport responsible risk decision-making.
(25)	According to the Equator Principles (2020), Designated Countries are those countries deemed to have robust environmental and social governance,
legislation systems and institutional capacity designed to protect their people and the natural environment. As a proxy, the Equator Principles
Association requires that a country must be both a member of the OECD and appear on the World Bank High Income Country list to qualify as a
Designated Country.
(26) Financial Close is defined as the date on which all conditions precedent to initial drawing of the debt have been satisfied or waived.
(27)	According to the Equator Principles (2020), Category A Projects are those with “potential significant adverse environmental and social risks and/or
impact that are diverse, irreversible or unprecedented”. Category B Projects are those with “potential limited adverse environmental and social risks
and/or impact that are few in number, generally site-specific, largely reversible and readily addressed through mitigation measures”. Category C
Projects are those with “minimal or no adverse environmental and social risks and/or impacts”.

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Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Sustainable living

Enabling a more sustainable lifestyle in the community

Our approachTo empower more sustainable lifestyles, we are continuallyenhancing our sustainability-focused banking and wealthmanagement offerings to meet the ever-changing needs
and expectations of our customers.
Through a comprehensive end-to-end banking journey we are:• D riving greater sustainability awarenessTo provide information and insights that enable
customers to make more sustainable lifestyle choices.
• Enhancing financial planningand wealth democratisation
To provide accessible solutions for holistic financial
planning across all stages of our customers’ lives.
• Supporting sustainable and ESG investment
To provide accessible investment products thatincorporate ESG considerations, are highly competitive,
are easy to adopt and lead to more sustainable outcomes.

Key initiatives
Providing information and insights to drive
greater sustainability awarenessWe aim to encourage sustainable lifestyle choices amongst
our customers with information and insights on sustainableliving and financial wellbeing. We also provide platforms thatfacilitate greater adoption of sustainable lifestyle choices.
DBS LiveBetter was first introduced on digibank in
November 2021 as a one-stop digital sustainability platform.
The innovative platform provides our customers with endto-end banking solutions and services to fulfil financialtransaction needs while supporting more sustainableoutcomes for the environment and society. Through LiveBetter,customers have access to a range of resources to build theirown awareness of and capacity for sustainable living.
Following the success and positive feedback received
in Singapore and Hong Kong, in 2023 we rolled out the
LiveBetter in Indonesia to reach even more retail customers
in the region.
Since launching LiveBetter in November 2021, across all
three markets we have seen:> 1.7 million
customers engaged
through LiveBetter> SGD 2.3 million
contributedby customers to environmental
and social causes through Give Better> SGD 21 million
investments
in green funds and ETFs
through Invest Better> 2,800 tonnes of CO2e

offset by customers throughthe purchase of carbon credits
via Offset Better

We are continually exploring more innovative solutions to
help our customers adopt sustainable lifestyles more easily.
Through Spend Better we are partnering with small andlocal merchants that offer more sustainable products andservices, and rewarding customers with discounts when
they use DBS or POSB cards at our selected merchants. Thisnot only gives our customers more choices for sustainableliving, but also gives greater visibility to local SMEs and
MSMEs that may not always have the ability to reach out tocustomers through big marketing campaigns.

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Enhancing financial planning throughwealth democratisation
We aim to democratise wealth through the following threepronged approach:• R aising awareness of the need for financial anddigital literacy for all
Empowering everyone with the skills and knowledge
required to navigate the financial world in this digital age• Leveraging digital and analytical tools to empower
financial planning
Serving our customers through our artificial intelligence(AI)-powered financial planning tool
• Availing products and solutions to all to strengthen
financial resilience
Creating relevant products for our customers to achieve
their financial goals
Raising awareness of the need forfinancial and digital literacy for all
Financial literacy and planning are essential for managing
finances wisely and navigating the various life challenges
and opportunities that arise. We believe those who areempowered with the necessary knowledge will be better
placed in making more informed decisions to achievefinancial wellness.
As such, we are committed to enhancing financial accessibility,
democratising wealth, and promoting financial planningand literacy for all. We aim to be a one-stop solution to
the financial needs of our customers, particularly those
who would otherwise not have access to dedicated wealthrelationship managers.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

To this end, we have developed a personal finance guidanceon our public website, DBS Financial Planning Portal.
This guide offers a myriad of relevant articles, events andplatforms to assess suitable financial products and services,which are categorised into six key themes that reflect six
major milestones in life.
The six key themes are:Financial
Planning

Budgeting& DebtProtection

Investing

My HomeRetiring& Estate

In the portal, concise finance and investment articles,
primarily presented as short-form content, are systematically
categorised. This ensures easy accessibility and relevancefor our time-constrained visitors who seek to empowerthemselves with enhanced financial knowledge.
We also produced animated videos and organised in-person
seminars and workshops to appeal to different segments of
our audiences on various financial topics, such as budgeting,investing, insurance and planning for retirement. Almost
1,900 people attended in-person seminars in 2023 alone,of which over 20 were held in collaboration with otheragencies such as the Singapore Exchange, Workforce
Singapore, and the National Library Board.
In order to better understand the changing needs of thegeneral public and provide more insightful guidance on
the portal, DBS makes use of insights from its extensive
customer base and customer immersion programmes.
Read more about how we strengthen financial and digital support in thewider community in our Financial inclusion chapter on page 40.

Leveraging digital and analytical tools to empower
financial planning
The year 2023 marked the fourth year that we haveembarked on our advocacy efforts of financial planningand wellbeing. We remain committed to creating innovative
solutions that can help our customers navigate major
milestones in life, such as buying their first homes, building
emergency funds, saving for children, and preparing for
retirement, among others.

leveraging AI and machine learning (ML) to critically enable
deeper engagement.

During the year, we have further enhanced our holistic
artificial intelligence (AI)-powered financial planning
tool through Plan on our digiBank app to improve ourcustomers’ banking experience. Formerly known as DBS
NAV Planner, Plan is able to customise each customer’sinteraction according to their financial needs, risk profile,transaction behaviour and specified financial objectives,

Furthermore, our data analytics showed that customers who
have used Plan saved at least 80% more than non-users.
They also invested over four times more and were insured
twice as much as non-users. We also observed a strong
interest in retirement planning with more than a two-foldincrease in our customers setting retirement goals.

Plan delivers real-time, intuitive, unintrusive, and hyperpersonalised financial planning insights through action
insights or “nudges”, for our customers. Some examples ofthese automated nudges include spending alerts and saving
reminders to help our customers manage their cashflows,savings, and budgeting plans. Since launch, over 3 million
customers in Singapore have engaged with Plan nudges.

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Besides enhancing Plan on our digiBank app, we also
launched our open architecture DBS Healthcare
Marketplace in 2023. DBS Healthcare Marketplace isan aggregator site with comparator and filter functions
so customers can conveniently and frictionlessly browse
Integrated Shield Plans and CareShield Life Supplements
across multiple providers, and take action to close theirhealthcare protection gaps to extend their hospitalisation
coverage and long-term disability care costs. The Healthcare
Marketplace is being progressively updated to offer a wider
variety of product solutions.
Availing products and solutions to
all to strengthen financial resilience
Finally, to ensure as many financial product solutions as
possible are priced within the reach of the median income
households in Singapore, we have both curated products,
as well as collaborated extensively with strategic partners, tooffer high quality solutions at accessible price ranges in thewealth management space.
Taking a principles-based approach, we have developed thefollowing product solution suite at accessible price points tofurther strengthen financial resilience:• Save – to build a strong financial foundation
	
An example includes our regular savings plan, Invest
Saver, where customers can automate their investments
in low-cost exchange traded funds.
• Protect – to address the rising healthcare costs	We also developed, ProtectFirst, a micro insurance
starting from SGD 5 monthly that offers customers thebenefit of protection in three areas – personal accident,
critical illness and life.
An example includes the Dementia Caregiver Protect,which was launched in partnership with Chubb Insurance
as a first-in-market insurance solution that provides
support for dementia caregivers and care recipients.

(1)
(2)

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Specifically designed to address the gaps in insurance
available to caregivers of people suffering from dementia,
we hope to offer some respite for caregivers as we movetowards building a dementia-inclusive society.
• Invest – to recalibrate investments for flexibility	
As part of the wider ‘life stage investing’ that we currently
offer within our digibank app, we launched Retirement
Portfolio in partnership with J.P. Morgan Asset Management
to better preserve the wealth accumulated in the earlier
stages of life. One key feature, for example, includes theindividualised retirement glidepath portfolio integrated
into Plan with digiBank app. Here, customers can indicate
their desired retirement age at the point of purchase,and the portfolio will automatically ‘glide’ from growth tostability as the customer approaches retirement.

Supporting sustainable and ESG investing

Promoting retirement readiness amidst an aging society
According to the Ministry of Health, Singapore became anaged society in 2017 and is set to become a “super-aged”
society, with one in four citizens aged 65 and above by 2026.

to raise awareness of the importance of planning ahead
and emphasised how small, cumulative actions today canmake a significant difference in financial adequacy during
the later years.

With an aging population, coupled with volatile economic
cycles and various global trends, we recognise that
retirement plans may be disrupted and there will be a needfor recalibration. To this end, there is mounting urgency for
Singapore’s residents to plan ahead for financial adequacy
in retirement, through personal savings and holdings
in government schemes such as CPF LIFE and theirSupplementary Retirement Scheme (SRS) accounts.

We recognise that financial needs change over time,
as such the composition of our investment portfolios
should correspondingly evolve to reflect our changing
circumstances, responsibilities, and future needs for ourfunds. Moreover, gaining a comprehensive and complete
view of our financial health as we approach retirement canhelp identify and address any potential gaps early, as partof a more holistic financing planning journey.

In 2023, we kickstarted several initiatives and introduced
a number of new products and tools to enable adequate
financial planning for our customers amidst the imminent
shift in the demographic transition.

Get theright advice

In partnership with Manulife, we ran a retirement campaign
from May to September 2023 to better prepare ourcustomers and their retirement plans. The campaign aimed

Sustainable investments are defined as investment products (bonds, equity and funds) that have MSCI ESG ratings of BBB and above.
Based on our updated methodology sustainable investment AUM was 56.6% as of December 2022.

We are seeing increasing interest in investment products
guided by ESG principles, particularly amongst the next
generation of clients, as awareness of sustainability
issues increases and more clients seek to invest in ways
compatible with their values. As such, we are committed toassisting more clients in doing good while also doing well byenhancing sustainable and ESG investment opportunities.
In December 2020, DBS Private Bank had targeted tohave more than 50% of AUM in sustainable investments(1)by 2023, which we achieved by the end of 2021 and havemaintained since. In 2023, we updated our methodology toinclude all investment products, as we previously excluded
products that did not have any ESG ratings such as

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Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

structured products, digital assets, among others.
Under this new methodology, our sustainable investment
AUM against total investment AUM was 55.6%(2) as ofDecember 2023.
In addition to integrating ESG considerations into
investment strategies for competitive returns, we arealso providing opportunities for those who want to takean impact-first approach, an investment philosophy andapproach that prioritises impact over financial returns.
Looking ahead, we continue to strengthen our sustainable
investment product suite and introduce new climatethemed products to our offerings for clients.

Helping clients understand theclimate-related impact of their portfolios
For clients looking to understand the climate-related
impact of their portfolio, we have partnered with MSCI
to provide access to carbon-related datapoints, which is
now internally available for our relationship managers
to offer better advice on portfolio management. This will
form the bedrock for establishing visibility and awarenessof carbon exposures within client’s investment holdings
and support clients’ investment decision-making throughthe lens of carbon risk.
Launch of the Asia Impact First FundIn March 2023, we announced the first close of the Asia
Impact First Fund, which we launched together with
Heritas Capital to support innovative and high-growthsocial enterprises across Asia to scale.
We raised over USD 20 million. As the anchor investor,
DBS committed 50% of the initial fund raise, alongsideother like-minded and impact-focused parties or clients.

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Financial inclusion

Democratising banking services for all

Our approach
Across Asia, there remains a significant number ofunderbanked individuals and businesses. Access toaffordable and appropriate financial services is crucial for
addressing rising inequality, supporting livelihoods andenabling inclusive economic growth.
At DBS, we see an opportunity to meet these underserved
needs through innovative financial services that makebanking more inclusive and accessible.
We aim to democratise banking services by:• U
 plifting lives and livelihoods in our communities
To expand our reach and provide financial access toserve the underbanked who are typically excluded fromtraditional banking services.
• Boosting the playing field for micro, small andmedium enterprises
To proactively address working capital requirements andstrengthen capacity building in sustainability throughstrategic partnerships.
• Strengthening financial and digital support towards
empowerment and self-relianceTo further educate the community at large in making andexecuting better financial decisions while adopting good
cyber hygiene practices online.

Key Initiatives
Uplifting lives and livelihoods in ourcommunities
Lower-income and underprivileged families in Singapore
High inflation, elevated interest rates, and prolonged
economic uncertainty globally are intensifying cost-of-livingpressures. This affects the overall financial health andwellness of many, especially the most vulnerable in society.
Against this backdrop, helping our customers deal with therising cost of living is of paramount importance to DBS, as
we work ever more closely with governments, businesses
and community groups in a collective effort.
In 2023, DBS committed SGD 40 million to help lowerincome households in Singapore ease the rising cost-ofliving pressures. Our support includes:

Defraying daily expenses
DBS 5 Million Hawker Meals – weekly SGD 3
hawker meal subsidies given to the first
100,000 users in Singapore through
DBS PayLah! App
Reducing mortgage payments
POSB home loan package – concessionary
home loan rate at 2.6% p.a., this is available
to lower income individuals (defined as having
a monthly income of SGD 2,500 and lower),as well as new homeowners wishing torefinance their mortgages
Bolstering savings
DBS Multiplier high-yield savings programme– higher savings interest rate of 1.8% on higher
balances are offered to lower income individuals
and gig-workers

Participating hawkers and residents and our DBS 5 Million Hawker Meals initiatives in 2023

From February 2023, Singapore residents could enjoy
cashback of up to SGD 3 if they are among the first 10,000
to use our DBS PayLah! app to scan and pay for their meals
in hawker centres, every Friday. As of December 2023,
almost 4.67 million meals have been redeemed.
Due to the overwhelming response and positive feedback
received, we have extended the year-long initiative until
July 2024, and we are projecting to subsidise a total of 7.5
million meals over the entire 18-month period.
These measures are in addition to our announcement tocommit up to SGD 1 billion over the next 10 years to drive
programmes that support lives and livelihoods of the lowincome and underprivileged across our core markets. As apurpose-driven bank, we believe that we can play a part in
uplifting vulnerable and disadvantaged families and fosteringa more inclusive society.
Read more about our SGD 1 billion commitment in the DBS Foundation
chapter on page 82.

Work permit holders in Singapore
Recognising that work permit holders (WPH), including
migrant workers and migrant domestic workers, are among
the most vulnerable residents in Singapore, POSB remains
committed to onboard WPH into the formal banking system.
We continue to be the only bank in Singapore to do so, in
collaboration with the Ministry of Manpower. Today, the bankholds over 70% market share of the overall WPH accounts,
and the number of accounts opened in 2023 have grown
18% year-on-year, mainly for the purpose of salary payment.
In our pursuit of strengthening the financial stability of WPH,
we delved deep into their digital banking journey, identified
various obstacles and developed potential solutions that
became foundational to our mission.
One of the key challenges was the apparent digital andfinancial literacy gap faced by many WPH. In response, thebank organised and rolled out several new and tailoredinitiatives during the year, which ranged from providing

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Priority sectors in India
As part of our larger focus on responsible banking, our India
franchise – DBS Bank India Limited (DBIL) – has increased
lending to specific sectors and categories of borrowers thatare typically underserved when it comes to accessing formal
credit. With dedicated efforts in the past few years, DBIL has
been making a positive impact in the following areas:

Training workshops catered for our work permit holders

after-hours support, interactive training workshops, andempowerment programmes for the self-starters to further
expand our support and offerings.
• W
 e tailored our digital literacy training offerings
to cater to the different needs of WPH. For example,
to break down the language barrier and ensure more
effective communications, we developed instructional
videos with more animated elements and provided
native-language voiceovers. To further encourage active
participation and build more self-confidence, the training
workshops are modified to bring about a more immersive
and interactive experience.
• In collaboration with the Migrant Workers' Centre, welaunched the inaugural 'MiDigi Ambassador Programme,'
an initiative to help migrant workers overcome language
barriers in picking up digital skills. As of December 2023,

DBS sailboat rides organised for our work permit holders

around 30 migrant workers have signed up to become
digital ambassadors through this programme. They aretrained to offer enhanced support to their peers in dormitories
or workplaces, fostering a stronger sense of community.
• We also rolled out a bi-monthly dedicated help desk
at one of the key recreation centres for migrant workers,
the Terusan Recreation Centre, to provide additionalbanking assistance beyond our normal banking hours.
Besides enhancing digital literacy, we have also organised
events and outings for our WPH to places that are special
and unique in Singapore, such as the National Art Gallery and
DBS sailboat rides. We strongly believe these initiatives help
foster a stronger sense of belonging and enjoyment within
our community and underscore our dedication to uplifting
the lives and livelihoods of the diverse communities we serve.

• A griculture – Lending to farmers including womenin rural India for allied agriculture activities and for
improving sanitation.
• Small business sector – Lending to Micro, Small andMedium-sized enterprises (MSMEs)• Water sanitation and hygiene – Lending to rural andsemiurban locations
The portfolio across these categories has reached SGD 3 billion
in 2023, an increase of about 30% over the previous year.
With the specific goal of empowering women in rural India,
we embarked on our journey of on-lending to micro-financeinstitutions (MFIs) in 2020. These MFIs provide targetedfinancing to women in the rural areas specialised in incomegeneration activities such as allied agriculture, handicrafts,
small businesses, among others. They also provide loans forthe construction of toilets and piped water connections toimprove sanitation and the quality of life and health in the
remote rural hinterlands of India.
The MFI on-lending portfolio exceeded SGD 400 million in
December 2023, doubling the amount from the previous
year. To date, we have successfully supported about halfa million women to achieve financial independence andtheir entrepreneurial aspirations.

Durga (second from left) and our DBIL colleagues posting
for a photo after the new toilet construction was completedCase study 1: Water Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH) loans
Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) is a priority areafor India and DBIL aims to play a pivotal role in building
the required capabilities and making sure that dedicatedcapital is available to finance this sector through ourpartner institutions. To achieve this, we have enteredinto an agreement with Water.org, a leading non-profit
organisation, to support our partner Micro FinanceInstitutions to develop financial products and also
provide technical training for WASH loans. To date,
DBIL has partnered with seven such institutions withan overall disbursement of SGD 8.7 million, supporting
over 20,000 families.
Durga, a 45-year-old lady, lives in her village Gokul Nagar,
Karnataka along with her two sons and husband. Durga
came to know about WASH loans offered by IIFL Samasta,
one of the partner financial institutions of the bank. She
obtained a loan of SGD 400 to construct a toilet with pipedwater connection which, as an exception to the norm,
was not dependent on any governmental welfare scheme.
Referring to her new toilet, Durga says, “My family has
immensely benefitted from the access to clean water andtoilet; it has also supported me in my dairy business”.
Taking inspiration from her, other homes in her
community are also looking to leverage these WASH loans
to improve their water sanitation and hygiene.
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Case study 2: Reliance Industries Limited
and DBS Bank India collaborate to promote
Compressed Biogas (CBG) project
India produces a significant amount of agricultural residue
which is usually burnt in the absence of adequate processing
infrastructure and logistical support. The agricultural residue
supply chain in India has traditionally been unorganised
as farmers and aggregators have not been adequately
incentivised and financed. Compressed Biogas (CBG), a
purified compressed bio-gas that has similar calorific value
and other properties to compressed natural gas (CNG), iscarbon neutral and increasingly being utilitsed as a green
renewable automotive fuel.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

on agriculture that is affected by seasonal variations. These
modalities required DBS Bank India to introduce significant
customisations to the standard supply chain financing model
to meet the requirements of the project. The financing
provided by DBS enabled the development of the ecosystemfor vendor partners to aggregate agricultural residue as
inputs for CBG production plants across India. The funding
structure also ensured that the logistics are designed in a waythat the CBG project could remain competitive and achieveenhanced commercial scale.

Reliance plans to set-up around 100 CBG plants over the next
5 years that would consume more than 5.5 million tonnes perannum of agricultural residue and organic waste, resulting inan estimated reduction of about 2 million tonnes of carbon
In addition to being an alternative fuel that could align withthe global shift towards cleaner energy product while meeting dioxide emissions annually.
the growing domestic demand for gas, CBG also benefits
Soumya Dutta, Head of Treasury, Reliance Industries Limited
the local agricultural economy of India. In particular, thesaid, “As a company, Reliance Industries has accelerated plansproduction of CBG can provide farmers with an additional
to deploy bioenergy projects and we are proud to have DBS
revenue stream and help them avoid heavy penalties linked
Bank India partner with us in our larger goal of sustainable
to the burning of their agricultural wastes.
development and in the clean energy transition of our nation.
Reliance Industries Limited (“Reliance”), identifying this as
an important element in their net zero road map, has plans
to invest across the country to produce CBG as an alternative
to imported CNG and other fossil fuels making India
a prominent source of bio-fuel.
In 2023, DBS collaborated with Reliance to develop a supply
chain financing programme in this regard. The CBG industry
is highly fragmented in nature and predominantly dependent

DBS Bank is renowned for its expertise in supply chain
financing and goes beyond traditional banking to enable
responsible solutions for large enterprises, their supplier
networks as well as small and medium businesses by
empowering them to streamline operations for enhanced
efficiency. The bank's extensive Asian network and deep
expertise in customising sustainable solutions enablebusinesses to mitigate risks and seize growth opportunities.”

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Boosting the level playing field for micro
small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs)
Addressing working capitalrequirements among MSMEs
The post-pandemic era has been significantly morechallenging than most had initially hoped. Heightened
geopolitical tensions, supply chain disruptions, the energy
complex causing a spike in inflation, and extreme weather
events are just among the many global challenges
experienced in the past year. Despite being the backboneof many economies, MSMEs often face the brunt ofsuch turbulence.
As MSMEs pivot in a post-pandemic era, they continue
to have unmet working capital requirements to sustain
themselves. In 2023, we have approved over 4,400
unsecured loans totalling SGD 665 million to MSMEs in
Singapore, which consisted of both government risk shareand commercial unsecured loans.
DBS has also doubled down on efforts in addressing theunmet working capital requirements of our SME customers
in our core markets across Asia. For example, DBS HK is anactive lender to the HK SME financing scheme, which was
jointly launched by the Hong Kong Government and HKMC
Insurance, to enhance cashflow support for local SMEs andhelp them obtain financing for their business needs. In India,
DBIL launched an exclusive outreach programme for
empowering SMEs through knowledge sharing and focused
events targeted at financing SMEs.
Building strategic and sustainability
capabilities through partnerships
Besides addressing the limited access to financing, thefeedback from many SMEs is that they are seeking support
to strengthen internal capabilities, as well as opportunities
to collaborate and establish stronger partnerships. DBS
remains committed to focus on supporting SME owners
to build capabilities, upskill their employees and empower
them on their sustainability journey.

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

In 2023, we launched a comprehensive suite of programmes
to support SMEs in sustainability around four strategic pillars:

Learn Better
Educating SMEs on sustainability
through various channels
Connect Better
Connecting SMEs with key stakeholders
in the sustainability ecosystem
Finance Better
Financing SMEs with financing andbanking solutions to enable their transition
Track Better
Providing toolkits for SMEs to monitor andtrack their carbon emission and assessmentof their sustainability maturity stages journey
Learn Better: DBS SME Skills Booster programme
To help SMEs transform from the ground up and futureproof their workforce through skills development, we havepartnered SkillsFuture Singapore under the SkillsFuture
Queen Bee (SFQB) initiative to launch the DBS SME Skills
Booster programme in July 2022. After a successful firstyear, we have renewed the programme for another two
years. DBS is the only bank in the SFQB network.
In 2023, the programme pivoted to focus on sustainability,with the aim to boost sustainability capability and capacityof SMEs, in response to the growing interest amongst ourSME customers to embrace sustainability as part of theirbusiness strategy. Taking a holistic approach to strengthen
overall business resilience, the programme offers support
in areas of business growth, banking and finance, digitaltransformation and cyber wellness.

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Highlights

As of December 2023, the bank has completed the training
programme for over 160 companies in partnership withtraining providers such as UN Global Compact Network
Singapore, Singapore Environment Council, and the National
Centre of Excellence for Workplace Learning (NACE) Led by
Nanyang Polytechnic.
Testament to the efforts we have made in upskilling andreskilling the SME community, and going beyond developing
capabilities of DBS staff, DBS received the recognition as a
SkillsFuture Queen Bee and was awarded the SkillsFuture
Employer Award (Gold) in October 2023.
Connect Better: Partnering for Sustainable Outcomes
We have established several new strategic partnerships
to bring together our SME customers and an extensive
network of sustainability solution providers, industry leaders,
government agencies, among others. Through the network
we have curated, our SME customers can tap into a wider
range of programmes from our partners, including:• S chneider Electric: Thought-leadership and mentorshipfor SMEs to kickstart their sustainability journey and build
capabilities to decarbonise.
• TÜV SÜD: A sustainability certification programmethat supports SMEs to meet customer and regulatory
requirements in key areas such as environmental healthand safety, data and information security and food safety,
amongst others.
• Keppel Corporation: Sustainable urbanisation anddigitalisation solutions for energy intensive companies inindustries such as healthcare, hospitality, and commercial
and industrial real estate.
• A sustainability playbook for SMEs to identify netzero opportunities and transform their business models
while helping the economy to decarbonise throughthree focus areas: (i) transport decarbonisation and fleet
electrification, (ii) renewable energy and green buildingsand (iii) circularity and resource efficiency

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

To further support SMEs scale and improve their digital
capabilities to become more competitive, productive andresilient, DBS launched the Start Digital 2.0 programmewith IMDA & Enterprise SG in September 2022. Thisinitiative pushes affordable tech-driven solutions to ourSMEs by subsidising easy-to-deploy digital solutions suchas accountancy software, workplace collaboration tools,
payment solutions and human resource applications,among others. As of December 2023, we received over
500 companies sign-ups and successfully enrolled close to
1,000 solutions with our partners. These solutions include
accounting software that helps to synchronise different
modes of payment and reduce overhead cost and platforms
that enhance brand credibility leading to higher conversionof leads.
Finance Better: Supporting positive environmental
and social impact
Business for Impact (BFI) Banking Package
To better support local businesses that drive positive socialand environmental impact, we have also developed new
financing solutions dedicated for SMEs with sustainablebusiness models. In 2023, DBS SME Banking and DBS
Foundation collaborated to develop the Business for Impact(BFI) Banking Package, our first banking product customised
for SMEs with a sustainable business model in Singapore.
The package recognises SMEs who continue to demonstrate
a social and environmental commitment, such as those thatare raiSE (Singapore Centre for Social Enterprise) members,
certified with B Corporation by B Lab Global, or participantsin DBS Foundation’s impact programmes. Designed tomeet their unique growth needs, the BFI Banking Package
comprises of a suite of solutions, including multi-currency
account with fee waivers, working capital loans, insurancewith preferential rates and access to our programmes that
support SMEs in digital tools adoption, skills training andsustainability. The package is currently launched in Singapore.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Since the launch, over 160 SME customers have converted
to our new Business for Impact multi-currency businessaccount, allowing us to better service them through thesuite of accompanying financial products, especially theenabling learning programme offerings for SMEs (suchas Start Digital, SME Skills Booster).
Eco-renovate loan
In late 2023, we introduced the DBS Eco Renovate Loan.
The loan is designed to encourage SMEs to use eco-friendly
solutions or materials when renovating their office spaces orindustrial facilities. To be eligible, SMEs must use materials,
fixtures and equipment from a pre-qualified checklist. The loan
can cover renovation activities, including but not limited to:
1. Indoor air quality: certified low or no VOC paints,
non toxic flooring
2. Lighting: energy efficient LED lighting
3. Thermal & Acoustic Comfort: Solar film,
double glazed window
4. Green Energy & Electrification: Solar panels,
EV charger, Smart meters
5. Waste and wastewater Treatment: Wastewater 			treatment & reuse system
6. Others: Rainwater collection system, products
and materials bearing the Singapore Green Building
Product (SGBP) logo
We recognise this is a first step in raising awareness among
our SME customers on the sustainable practices throughthe renovation process, and we are encouraged by the
positive feedback from customers and industry players.

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Track Better: Leveraging easy-to-use
toolkits to manage environmental footprint
To help SMEs’ measure, manage and report on theirsustainability progress, DBS and our market-leading
sustainability partners are providing a range of easy-to-use
tools for SMEs. For example:• T
 o get them started on their sustainability journeys,
we are co-developing a digital self-assessment tool
exclusively designed for SMEs. The tool enables
businesses to review and evaluate their sustainability
efforts and recommend actions for progress across theirapproach to governance, strategy, risk management, andsetting meaningful metrics and targets.
• To help SMEs kickstart their decarbonisation journey, weare partnering with several carbon management platform
providers to offer simplified online platforms for SMEs to
input and assess their direct carbon emission and datasets.
More initiatives under the Track Better pillar will be
progressively rolled out from 2024 as we continue toaccelerate the sustainability journeys of our SME customers.

Strengthening financial and digital support
towards empowerment and self-reliance
Young people
POSB has been promoting the importance of savingsand encouraging the habit of being thrifty among young
Singaporeans for generations. One of the ways we havebeen doing so is through the POSB Smart Buddy
programme, which was launched in 2017 as the world’s first
integrated in-school savings and payments programme.
The programme provides a free wearable device to teachschool-going children about cashless payments and prepare

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Highlights

them for the digital economy of the future. Following
the Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministryof Education (MOE) signed in April 2022, we are on track
to install an e-payment infrastructure in more than 330
primary, secondary schools and all junior colleges/ Millennia
Institute by 2025.
In 2023, we have successfully enabled some 170 schools
onto the Smart Buddy programme with about 160,000
students using our Smart Buddy smartwatches and/ or
smart cards for digital payments, up from approximately
70,000 students from more than 100 participating schoolsa year ago. The programme also supports close to 17,000
needy students covered under MOE’s Financial Assistance
Scheme (FAS), where the number of students receiving meal
subsidies through the Smart Buddy’s School Subsidy
System has more than tripled as compared to 2022.
School-going children can also accumulate allowancesavings through the Smart Buddy programme. Their daily
or weekly allowance savings can be aggregated monthly
into the child’s savings account linked to the programme,
thereby encouraging the habits of thriftiness and promoting
the growth of financial savings over time. In 2023, students
using our Smart Buddy smartwatches/ cards have saved
about SGD 8 million of their Smart Buddy allowances andthese savings were automatically aggregated back into thechild’s linked savings account with Smart Buddy, an increaseof about 65% as compared to 2022.
Finally, as part of the bank’s continual support to help
ease the rising cost-of-living pressures and in conjunction
with our DBS PayLah! hawker meal subsidy initiative, we
also provided school allowance subsidies of up to SGD 2
every week as part of our Smart Buddy Back-to-School
Allowance campaign. This campaign ran from June toNovember 2023, which supported close to 21,000 eligible
students receiving almost SGD 530,000 worth of subsidies
to cover in and out-of-school expenses such as school
canteen meals, stationery and school textbooks.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Seniors and elderly
To forge a more inclusive digital society, DBS/ POSB has
been providing financial and digital literacy training to
the less-digitally savvy, including seniors who have had tograpple with the increasing prevalence of digital platforms in
our everyday life. We believe they will have more confidence
and resilience to adapt and navigate the rapidly digitalisingworld when they are equipped with the right digital skills
and know-how.
To ensure that no one is left behind in Singapore’s
digitalisation journey, in partnership with DBS Foundationand the Singapore Digital Office we committed SGD 1 million
in November 2022 to support the national Digital for life (DfL)
movement. This broad-based support will benefit close to100,000 Singaporeans through grants for digital inclusion
projects, and digital banking and payments workshops overthe next two years. In 2023, we pioneered a new seriesof edutainment roadshows, incorporating digital literacy
workshops infused with elements of Getai – a form of
vernacular entertainment involving live performances of music,
song, and dance – to better attract and engage our seniors.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Rest of the community
In line with our priority to help the community gain moreawareness on digital banking services and achieve financial
wellness, we also partnered several organisations, such as
Central Provident Fund, National Library Board, the Instituteof Technical Education (ITE) among others, to organise
physical and virtual digital and financial literacy workshops.
For example, the ITE X DBS Financial Literacy Programme,
which is a mandatory curriculum, was renewed in August2022 for the next three years to focus on imparting
foundational financial management knowledge in a
structured classroom-style setting. In 2023, over 28,000
students have taken part and completed the financial
literacy curriculum. Additional workshops and seminars
that cover topics on investments, savings, and retirements
are also offered to students and the wider working adultcommunity, including gig workers, who are interested infinancial planning for the different stages of life.
Read more about how we continually strengthen the financial and digital
support in our community in the POSB Highlights in our Annual Report.

With the growing threat of online phishing scams in recent
times, we believe a strong digital literacy is imperative. We
recognise that seniors are more likely to need help when it
comes to adopting safe cyber security practices. To this end,
we partnered with the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore(CSA) – in collaboration with the Singapore Police Force (SPF)
and Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) – andco-developed an anti-scam and cyber security quiz under
the SG Cyber Safe Seniors Programme.
In 2023, we engaged over 16,800 seniors who participatedin our digital literacy workshops, including the IMDA digital
payment learning journeys where anti scam security tips
make up the foundational training before embarking on the
cashless learning journeys.

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTSPILLAR 2

Responsible

Business
Practices
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Enhancing employee engagement and culture
Developing our people
Driving diversity, equity and inclusion
Managing our environmental footprint
Sustainable procurement
Technology resilience (including cyber security)
Data governancePreventing financial crime
Fair dealing
Responsible tax management

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Enhancing employee engagement and culture
Enhancing employee experience through iconic journeys

Our approach
At DBS, our employee value proposition is to enable our
employees to Live Fulfilled: Be the Best, Be the Change
and Be the Difference.
All our people practices and programmes are designed to help
employees feel purposeful, feel connected, feel invested in,feel valued and feel cared for through the following ways:• W
 e transform the way we work through the implementationof Managing through Journeys (MtJ) and Horizontal
Organisation (HO) where we break down silos, align teammembers to a common customer journey where every
touchpoint and process is equally valued, and have teammembers own shared outcomes. Such an approach
drives better business outcomes and enables us to makework more purposeful for our employees.
• We help our employees feel connected via collaborative
work practices and building networks through communities
such as our Culture Builders, T-Circles and Lean In
Circles. We also put in place several channels to give our
employees direct access to our senior leadership. These
include our quarterly bank-wide employee townhall
DBS Open, featuring a Q&A segment hosted by CEO
Piyush Gupta and joined by other Group Management
Committee leaders. Additionally, our senior leadershipregularly conducts office visits across markets to engage
directly with employees.
• Furthermore, we consistently invest in our employees
and provide an array of developmental opportunities
to help them grow in their careers. We offer acomprehensive suite of employee benefits, rewards andrecognition, underscoring our commitment to valuing
and caring for our employees. Read more about our key
initiatives in the Employee Well-being and Rewards &Recognition sections below

Over the years, DBS has continuously improved our
employee experience across different touch points. Whatbegan as an effort to address employee pain points evolved
to encompass holistic aspects of the employee life cycle
to achieve more impactful outcomes such as employee
advocacy, retention and motivation.
In 2023, the Employee Experience Council wasestablished to drive four iconic employee journeys:••••

Employee wellbeing
Workload
Assimilation of new employees
Rewards and recognition

Over 1,200 employees were appointed as Culture
Builders across the bank to communicate, gather feedback
and organise programmes in support of the four iconic
employee experience journeys, drive employee engagement
and build culture.

Key initiatives
Employee well-being
To create a sustained impact on employee well-being, it isessential to adopt a holistic and comprehensive approach,focusing on three key pillars: building self-mastery, fostering
healthy relationships, and nurturing a healthy work culture.
These principles are encapsulated in DBS’ employee wellbeing framework “Best of ME, Best of WE and Best ofEnvironment”, which was launched in April 2023.
Our key initiatives under the Best of ME, WE andEnvironment framework include:

Culture Builders at DBS Sailing by the Bay

Best of ME• To enhance career well-being, we provide iGrow
as a personalised career coach leveraging Machine
Learning and Artificial Intelligence to assist employees
in identifying future career aspirations and the skills
required to reach these goals. Read more in the next
chapter on Developing Our People.
• To promote physical well-being, we launched theiHealth Wallet in July 2023. iHealth is a personal healthplatform providing employees with insights on theirhealth and recommendations of personalised wellness
tips. It includes iFit, a health programme that provides
cash incentives to employees when they complete theirhealth screening and are within healthy ranges for Body
Mass Index (BMI) and Blood Pressure (BP).
• To support mental well-being, our iOK programme
offers our employees and dependents access to
professional psychologists and counsellors roundthe-clock to support them on work and life issues. We
also provide knowledge-building sessions to equip
employees with skills to enrich their mental, physical,
career and financial well-being.

iHealth Wallet launchSome of our Culture Builders in Singapore

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Highlights

Best of WE• We believe that enhancing managerial capability is a
key enabler in fostering healthy relationships and wellbeing among our employees. Our signature Building
Great Managers programme trains our managers on
how to manage workload of teams, show care and build
psychological safety.
• Employees are also encouraged to build connections
with colleagues from other departments through social
communities, such as our Well-being Champions
Network and Lean In Circles. More than 350
employees have signed up to be Well-being Champions
to promote well-being in their teams and drive
engagement activities. Additionally, over 600 employees
are part of our Lean In Circles which serve as safe spaces
for colleagues to meet regularly, mentor and support one
another in achieving their personal and professional goals.
Best of Environment• Under the Joyspace initiative which incorporates
feedback gleaned from employee surveys and focus
groups, DBS continues to transform and repurpose
its offices into open and conducive workspaces thatfacilitate collaboration and enable cohesion amongcolleagues. In 2023, we launched seven ideation rooms
and seven wellness spaces in Singapore to support
employee productivity and well-being. In comparison
to typical meeting rooms, users reported an increase inproductivity when brainstorming in ideation rooms.
• We nurture a psychologically safe and open culture via
Anytime Feedback, encouraging employees to give andreceive feedback all year round, Meeting MOJO rituals toensure inclusive meeting participation, and Wreckoon,
our psychological safety tool for employees to offer
alternative views for consideration during discussions.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Ensuring workplace safety and healthTo care for our employees and ensure a safe working
environment, DBS has implemented a Workplace
Safety & Health (WSH) framework to manage physicalworkplace safety in compliance with Singapore
Ministry of Manpower’s WSH Act requirement. Acrossall DBS offices, a network of WSH coordinators assist
with safety, emergency and facilities matters in theirrespective premises.
The WSH framework covers:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Day one orientation in Hong Kong

Launch of iRewards

Roles and responsibilities of WSH coordinators
Common workplace hazards
Ergonomic and manual handling
Risk assessment and how to mitigate risk
Emergency plan and responses
First aid provision
Continuous safety enhancement

In addition, all risk coordinators adopted an annual
checklist to check off the responsibilities required of them.

Workload
Toggling multiple systems, inconsistent information andmanual handling of tasks can impact employee workload
and overall well-being. As such, we have further enhanced
our workflows and workbenches to orchestrate for ease ofwork and effective collaboration.
Our key initiatives to reduce toil in workload and enhance
productivity include:• Implementing automated dashboards and control towers
to boost efficiency through automating and eliminatinginternal reports, streamlining tasks and operations
tracking.

Discussions on workflows and workbenches to reduce toil and workload• C onnecting workflows across employees and providing
visibility of information and progress. Currently, majorityof our workflows are already automated or digitised.
We also have dedicated role-based workbenches for
an integrated and seamless end-to-end customer andemployee experience.
• Empowering employees with the relevant knowledge andskills on prioritisation through masterclasses and workshops.

Assimilation of new employees
To help our new employees thrive at work, we havereimagined their first-year employee journey at the bank sothat they feel connected and cared for by their manager,
team members and the broader DBS community.
Our key initiatives for assimilating new hires include:• R evamped Day One Orientation programme with
opportunities to engage with Senior Leaders andnetworking with their respective cohorts through activities.
• A 90-day on-the-job training programme which comprisesof 3 core components – “Do the Job”, “Know the People”
and “Grow in DBS” for all new employees.
• Buddy network and bank-wide communications
showcasing how fellow employees can support newhires in assimilating into the bank to increase employee
awareness and cultivate an inclusive culture.

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Highlights

Rewards & recognition
At DBS, our approach is to provide holistic total rewards forour employees which includes compensation, benefits andlearning opportunities. Many of these benefits programmes
are designed with flexibility and choice in mind, so that
employees are empowered to make optimal decisions forthemselves.
Our key initiatives this year include:• E nhancement of our employee benefits including
more iFlex dollars (flexible spending wallet), enhanced
health insurance and shortened vesting period for grantof Special Award (Shares).
• Pay rebalancing which enhances the guaranteedcompensation in the pay mix. 40% of our employees
benefited from this exercise that was carried out in thefirst quarter of 2023.
• Launch of iRewards which is a personalised dashboardthat shows employees’ Total Rewards at a glance.
• Total Rewards employee roadshows held inconjunction with staff appreciation week to showcase
our total rewards programme.
• Our iTQ (I Thank You) and WeTQ (We Thank You)
recognition programmes which allow our employees
to express gratitude to their colleagues throughout
the year.
Read more about how we care for and invest in our employees on the“Benefits and Learning” page of our public website.

Engagement scores
We continue to see an improvement in our overall
employee engagement score, reaching a record 90% in our2023 Kincentric My Voice survey. All of our core markets
outperformed their respective market benchmarks for best
employers.
This can be attributed to intentional efforts over the years tofinetune our employee experience. The improvement in thesurvey follow-up dimension speaks of our employee-centric(1)

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

approach as we actively listened to employee feedback,
implemented measures and monitored outcomes. We
also transparently communicated the improvements
and showed appreciation to our employees for theircontributions.
Furthermore, we saw an improvement in the wellbeing andrewards & recognition dimensions, which are testament toour dedicated efforts in helping our employees feel cared
for and valued. Our commitment to driving learning &development and diversity & inclusion (which are elaborated
upon in the next two chapters) have also been wellrecognised by our employees.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Table 1. My Voice Survey results over the years
My Voice Survey

2023

2022

2021

Employee Engagement

90%

87%

86%

Survey Follow-Up

89%

82%

84%

Wellbeing

89%

87%

-

Rewards & Recognition

81%

75%

75%

Learning & Development

93%

91%

90%

Diversity & Inclusion

93%

92%

91%

Table 2. Total number of employees and voluntary attrition rate over the years

AwardsWe have once again been awarded the Regional Best
Employer in Asia Pacific for 2023 by Kincentric for the
8th consecutive year. Additionally, we were recognised
as Kincentric’s Best Employer in all of our core markets(Singapore, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Taiwan)
and International Centres (Australia, South Korea, Thailand,
Vietnam, United Kingdom, United States).

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

Total number of employees

40,77036,07333,011

29,14828,526

Voluntary attrition rate

8.8%

14.7%

13.7%

7.7%

12.8%

Across our core markets, we received over 20 awards
conferred by local government agencies, professional bodies
and media agencies, recognising us for our people programmes
and practices, as well as being an employer of choice.

Additional employment statistics
Total number of employees and voluntary attrition rate
In 2023, our employee base expanded through thesuccessful integration of Citi Consumer Taiwan.
Our group-wide voluntary attrition rate decreased from
14.7% in 2022 to 8.8% in 2023. This decline can be
attributed to external job market conditions and our
initiatives focused on enhancing employee engagement andretention. Our attrition rates also remain lower than themarket average in all our core markets.

The rates exclude involuntary termination contract and agency employee attrition

From Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Developing our people
Our greatest asset to driving successOur approach
We empower our people to build fulfilling long-term careersand Be the Best, Be the Change and Be the Differenceto create impactful outcomes for our customers andcommunities.
Against a backdrop of global uncertainties and a fastchanging landscape, we are committed to helping ourpeople thrive in the future of work:• I nvesting in building functional skills
Foster a culture of continuous skills development to build
a relevant and future-ready workforce to drive the futureof banking• Developing our talent
Build resilience in our talent bench strength• Advancing our leadership development
Drive efforts to build great leaders, great teams and anempowering culture

Key initiatives
Investing in building functional skills
At DBS, we develop our people through our “Triple E”
framework — Education, Exposure and Experience. We
provide a comprehensive suite of opportunities to help our
people learn, grow and build a fulfilling career.

Education
Across all our business units and support units, we curate
structured learning roadmaps and certification
programmes to ensure our workforce is equipped with robust
functional knowledge and up-to-date expertise required
for their roles. We have over 30 comprehensive learning
roadmaps that span a wide range of skills, such as credit
assessment, data and digital, product sales, risk and control
and sustainability.

iGrow

Having successfully rolled out iGrow in Singapore, Hong Kongand India (DTI) in 2022, we expanded its reach to other coremarkets such as China and India (DBIL) in 2023. This expansion
ensures that our employees across various regions can benefit
from personalised development plans, aligning their skills with
their career ambitions.

Additionally, employees can access educational courses
from a library of more than 10,000 curated courses on ourlearning portal, Learning Hub. Collectively, our employees
have completed 1.4 million training courses.

Exposure
We provide exposure opportunities through the Be My
Guest programme, which saw employees participating in
more than 4,300 job shadowing, meeting exposuresand projects outside their respective departments.

DBS Future Forward Week

Experience
Employees can also participate in Internal Mobility to takeon new roles and grow in their careers. In 2023, about 30%
of jobs were filled by internal candidates. This increases
to 40% if we exclude entry level roles where we hire mainly
fresh graduates, or niche roles in technology that which
require more specialised skillsets.

Recognising the diverse aspirations and career trajectories ofour employees, we launched iGrow in 2022 as a personalised
career coach for each employee. iGrow leverages Artificial
Intelligence and Machine Learning to assist employees in identifying
the skills needed for their career goals and recommends therelevant education, exposure and experience opportunities for them.

Given the ongoing job disruptions amid global economic
shifts and technological advances, we continue to accelerate
efforts to build a resilient and future-ready workforce. To foster
continuous learning, we hosted a suite of learning festivals andsocial learning activities designed to boost career resilience.
DBS Future Forward Week is our annual learning weekwhere more than 18,000 employees boosted their career wellbeing through a medley of workshops, talks and activities thatwere designed to help them adopt a growth mindset, takecharge of their career and embrace new challenges.

2023 DBS Future Forward Week

Dr Tan See Leng, Singapore Minister for Manpower and Second
Minister for Trade and Industry, opened the learning festivalwith a keynote address where he highlighted the importanceof continuous learning and active upskilling to keep pace withaccelerating changes. He affirmed DBS as an excellent
employer that empowers employees, builds a good working
culture and creates the best work environment, so that ourpeople can achieve their Best of ME, WE and Environment.

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Approach

As part of our efforts to future-proof our workforce, we
continued our efforts to redesign jobs, upskill and reskill
employees, and prepare our people for new and enhanced
roles. We have identified more than 8,100 employees acrossvarious markets and functions who are set to transition
into evolved roles in the coming years. To facilitate thetransition, we are providing them with training throughmore than 30 structured learning roadmaps. Over 97%
of these identified employees have already commenced or
successfully completed their respective learning roadmaps.
9000
8000

8113

8339

7942
7278

5324

5000
3889

4000
3000
2000

0

.

Read more in our Governance and Responsible financing chapter.

To build the pipeline of future leaders, we also have a High
Potential (HIPO) identification process based on the “3P”
framework of Performance, PRIDE! and Potential. Potential isassessed by one’s ability, aspiration and engagement.

Developing our talentAnnually, we conduct a comprehensive bank-wide talentreview to assess the strength of our human capital in DBS,
which takes into consideration our business strategy, thetarget operating model and the talent bench strength
required to drive our business outcomes.

1577

1000

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

dimensions of a DBS senior leader success profile: (i)domain knowledge, (ii) critical experiences, (iii) leadershipcompetencies, and (iv) leadership traits. Bespoke
development plans are then formulated to address theirleadership gaps and prepare them for succession.

To ensure a fair and measured evaluation of potential
successors’ readiness, they are assessed against the four

2708

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

opportunities for employees at all levels. These
opportunities provide them with a solid understanding ofour purpose-driven vision for sustainability, fundamental
sustainability concepts and the role everyone can play in oursustainability efforts.

The review extends to succession plans for our seniorleadership positions. It is a meticulous and rigorous process
which includes inputs from the respective Country andGroup Functional Heads, followed by detailed reviews with
the CEO.

7000
6000

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

All identified HIPOs undergo an accelerated growth anddevelopment programme based on the comprehensive
Triple “E” framework of education, exposure and experience:• E ducation: conferences and bespoke leadershipprogrammes• Exposure opportunities: mentoring, coaching andnetworking with senior leaders• Experiences: new or expanded roles across different
functions or countries
To develop future general managers with diverse criticalexperiences, we have also scaled up our Strategic Talent
Assignment & Rotation (STAR) Programme, a curated

563
No. of employees
identiﬁed forupskilling/ reskilling2023

No. of employees who No. of employees who haveare in progress or havecompleted upskilling/
completed the upskilling/
reskilling and stayed inreskilling learning roadmap new role for ≥ 6 months

2022

2021

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

2-year development programme that broadens theexperience of HIPOs through a robust training curriculum
and cross-country or cross-functional rotations.
Our commitment to developing our talents has paid off. In
2023, our HIPO attrition was 5.9% and 19% of our HIPOs
took on a new role, while 34% took on an expanded role.

Advancing our leadership development
In 2023, we organised the DBS-NUS Business Leaders
Programme with the theme ‘Thriving in a New World
Order’. This is our apex leadership programme for seniorleaders, providing a diverse array of insightful perspectives
from academic faculty, thought leaders and our GroupManagement Committee to hone capabilities that are
essential to successful leadership of our country andbusiness franchises.
Since 2019, DBS has embarked on a Transformational
Leadership master plan with the goal of building a moreprogressive leadership cadre.
As part of the master plan, we have introduced a robust
set of initiatives for leadership capability development. To
drive leadership effectiveness, we have embedded thesix transformational leadership tenets – growth mindset,
psychological safety, feedback culture, courageousconversations, collaboration and decision making – into ourleadership culture through our flagship managerial training,
Building Great Managers.

In addition, we have also begun equipping our employeeswith Generative AI (Gen AI) skills to enhance theirwork. The skilful utilisation of Gen AI technology allows forincreased efficiency and productivity as routine and timeconsuming tasks can be automated, freeing up valuable
time for more strategic and higher-value work. We also
train our employees to identify and mitigate risks, ensuring
appropriate oversight and supervision in the use of Gen AI.
Since the launch of the DBS Sustainability Learning
Campus, we have expanded sustainability learning

2023 Singapore HIPO Connect Event

2023 DBS-NUS Business Leaders Programme

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Another T-Sprint Workshop

To further entrench our transformational leadership culture,
we conducted Transformational Sprints, a series ofstructured, experiential workshops that has led to improved
collaboration and greater team effectiveness, and T-Circles,
which are social learning communities where experienced
senior leaders mentor next-generation leaders in leadership
best practices. We firmly believe that our leaders are crucial
to culture-building and remain committed to developing
our leaders.

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTSEngagement scores

Table 1. My Voice Survey results in 2023

Our employees have strong positive perception of the bankinvesting in their growth and development.

My Voice Survey Dimension

2023

vs APAC Best Employers

vs APAC Financial Services Industry

Career Opportunities Score

93%

+11

+15

Learning & Development Score

93%

+5

+13

Additional employment statistics
I.		Average training hours(1) per year per employee
by gender and employee category
T-Sprint workshop

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

		The average training hours for permanent employees
was 32.5 hours in 2023. The trend of decreasing
training hours over the years is a result of ourcontinuous efforts to develop and deliver more concise
and impactful learning modules, ensuring effectivenesswithout compromising the quality of training.
		The most significant decrease in training hours isamong employees who are Senior Officers and below.
This is due to a shift in focus to on-the-job training forour employees who are part of the Skill Enhancement
Education & Development (SEED) programme in India.

50

40.5

39.2

40

40.3
37.9

35.7

35.3
32.7

32.5

38.4

40.2

40.0

34.8

36.9
33.2 33.5

32.3

31.6

30
24.2
20

II.		 Percentage of positions filled internally		We are committed to building the long-term careersof our people by providing them with various career
opportunities within the organisation.
		In 2023, about 30% of jobs were filled by internal
candidates. This increases to 40% if we exclude entry
level roles where we hire mainly fresh graduates, or
niche roles in technology that require more specialised
skillsets.
III.	Percentage of employees who receive regularcareer development reviews

100

Average training hours
per year per employee(permanent employees)

2023

2022

Average training hours
per year per employee(Male)

Average training hours
per year per employee(Female)Average training hours
per year per employee(SVP to MD)

Average training hours Average training hours
per year per employee per year per employee(Senior Oﬃcer and below)(Analyst to VP)

2021

		100% of employees received regular careerdevelopment reviews in 2023 and 2022.

(1)	Excludes informal learning methods such as community-based learning and exposure opportunities such as immersion programmes including
customer and employee journeys.

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Driving diversity, equity and inclusion
Fostering an inclusive culture with equal opportunities

Our approach
At DBS, we embrace diversity, equity and inclusion to enable
us to attract the best people, build the best teams and produce
the best work.
Recognising the diversity of our workforce, we are intentional
about providing equitable opportunities and building an
inclusive culture where all are empowered to grow to theirfullest potential, drive change and make a positive difference
to others. We are committed to ensuring a workplace freeof disrespectful behaviour or harassment, where employees
are treated with dignity and respect.
Our commitment to driving diversity, equity and inclusion
across our people programmes and practices is formalisedin the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Policy that we havepublished.
Read the full policy on the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion page of ourpublic website.

We help our employees Live Fulfilled by advocating the following:• E mbracing diversity at all levels
Welcoming diverse talent and cultivating a workplace
where all can thrive• Promoting equal opportunity
Ensuring fairness and equity across all our people
programmes and practices• Building an inclusive culture
Promoting an open and psychologically safe environment
for diverse employees to connect and support one another

our Board respectively. We have set a target to achieve 30%
female Board representation by 2030. The Nominating
Committee will continue to work towards this target by
identifying suitable candidates with complementary skillsets
and experience to our existing Board.
Overall, women comprise half of our workforce, 41% of
our senior management (SVP to MD) and drive some of
our largest businesses and functions across the bank.
The table below illustrates women representation acrossvarious categories.
Women in our workforce

2023

2022

Percentage of women in total workforce

50%

48%

Percentage of women among new hires

53%

40%

Percentage of women attrition

44%

43%

Percentage of women in IT/ Engineering roles 30%

29%

Percentage of women by rank
SVP to MD

41%

40%

Analyst to VP

49%

48%

Senior Officer and below

55%

52%

Percentage of women among all people managers
Percentage of women among
all people managers

40%

39%

SVP to MD

40%

40%

Key initiatives

Analyst to VP

41%

38%

Embracing diversity at all levels

Percentage of women among
all non-people managers

52%

50%

At the highest levels of leadership in DBS, women make up
27% of our Group Management Committee and 20% of

Across all our core markets and International Centres, the ratio of women is generally balanced, with more than 50% in all
markets except in India.
Core Markets

Percentageof women

International Centres

Singapore

Hong Kong

Mainland
China

TaiwanIndia

Indonesia

International Centres

52%

52%

68%

69%

30%

53%

54%

Our progress in boosting female representationin India
We have declared a target to reach 35% female
representation in India by 2026. To get there, ourIndia DEI council was established to drive a strategy ofintentional acquisition, customised development andcontinuous engagement. Along with setting up genderdiverse interview panels to mitigate hiring bias, we
also have a dedicated referral program to bring insuitable female talent. To support women re-entering
the workforce after career breaks, we also partneredwith Women in Banking and Sales communities as partof our Reimagine programme to engage this target
group. As a testament to our efforts to increase female
representation, our percentage of women among fresh
graduate hiring in 2023 is an encouraging 48%.

Launch of Women in Banking Communities with Aspire for Her

Launch of Women in Banking Communities
with Aspire for Her

To develop mid-career women in DBS, MyPersona, which is in
the fourth year running, equips women with core leadershipand business concepts, and opportunities for industry
mentoring and networking with leaders. Women leaders arealso invited to participate in external leadership development
programs such as upSurge, in collaboration with the
Xavier School of Management (XLRI).
DBS Bank India’s dedication to gender inclusivity has garnered
national recognition, notably being named the Best
Organization for Women in 2023 by The Economic
Times. Additionally, for the eighth consecutive year, DBS
Bank India has been honoured as one of the 100 Best
Companies for Women in India (BCWI) by India’s mostcomprehensive gender study for corporates. Furthermore,
DBS Bank India has secured a place on Kelp HR’s list of 25
Safest Workplaces for Women for three consecutive years.

Launch of 2023 MyPersona Development Program

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Promoting equal opportunity
We are committed to providing equitable opportunities
for our employees. To drive enduring change, we adopt
a data-driven approach and ensure that all our systems
and processes are designed to promote equal opportunity
across all touchpoints of our employee experience.
Promotion & talent development
Our promotion and talent review processes are fairly
conducted and data-driven. This approach safeguards
against unconscious bias, ensuring that all employees
have an equal and unbiased opportunity to progress intheir careers. We also have clear promotion guidelines andcriteria that is socialised with our employees.
Women have consistently made up about half of thepromotee cohort over the past five years.

2023 Women Leadership Programme

We embrace diversity of new hires and hire based on
merit (e.g., skills, experience or ability to perform the job),regardless of age, race, gender, religion, marital status, family
responsibilities or disability. In all markets that we operatein, we adhere to the market best practices in fair employment.
Our endeavours to increase women representation intechnology have yielded positive results, with the proportionof female fresh graduate hires in our Singapore Skill
Enhancement Education & Development (SEED)
programme rising from 24% in 2022 to 38% in 2023. This
progress is attributed to our deliberate efforts to showcase
female DBS technology representatives in our publicity
efforts and outreach events, as well as collaborating with
Women in Technology interest groups in universities topromote awareness of our SEED programme. Our female
technologists are also active mentors and mentees ininter-industry mentoring programmes such as IMDA
MentorConnect which gathers women in technology acrossthe private and public sector.

Moreover, to enhance the diversity of our workforce,
DBS is actively pursuing initiatives aimed at cultivating amore inclusive and varied talent pool. Our Back to Workprogramme is dedicated to reintegrating individuals who
have been away from the workforce for a period. Thisinitiative is designed to support mothers, caregivers andindividuals seeking to return to work after a career break byempowering them with career development tools, flexible
working arrangements and a comprehensive suite of
employee benefits.
At DBS, we advance women representation in seniorleadership through a multi-faceted approach. For key roles
at senior positions, we are committed to ensuring a genderdiverse slate of candidates with at least one female
candidate. We also launched our flagship Women
Leadership Programme this year. The Women Leadership
Programme is specifically designed to build, support andsustain a robust community of senior women leaders andstrengthen our pipeline for senior leadership in the bank.

Percentage ofwomen among
total promotees

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

48%

48%

49%

53%

51%

Pay equity
The overall gender pay gap of our six core markets, adjusted
for ranks across business and support units, is 1.4%. We
adopted the adjusted pay gap approach so as to ensure alike-for-like comparison within the same market, businessand support unit, and rank.
As part of our continuous effort to ensure pay equity, we
regularly conduct pay audits and review our compensation
practices.
Supporting employees through life stage transitions
Recognising the unique needs that arise during thetransition to parenthood, we support employees in aholistic manner ranging from parental and childcare leave
to financial reimbursement to help defray medical costs

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

and childcare expenses. Employees with a newborn or a
newly adopted child, or those who need to care for family
members recovering from critical illness or injury are able
to work from home fully for up to six months.
With effect from 1 January 2024, we will be increasing
paternity leave and the corresponding adoption leave
for new fathers from 2 weeks to 4 weeks. This initiative
acknowledges the shared responsibility of parenting,promotes gender equality and provides more flexibility forparents to share new responsibilities and celebrate theformative moments together with their new bundle of joy.
To ensure that parental leave does not adversely affect
employees’ performance ratings, any drop in rating fromtheir past performance rating will require justification.
In 2023, the retention rate of women returning to workfrom parental leave stood at 92%. This is testament of ourrobust support to help our employees thrive professionallyand live fulfilled.

Building an inclusive culture
We are committed to nurturing an inclusive culture in DBS
where all employees feel valued, cared for and invested in.
We build communities and support employees in creatinga safe and inclusive workplace.
Raising awareness of diversity and inclusion
To foster an inclusive workplace, we educate our
employees about diversity and their role in cultivating asafe and respectful work environment through training
programmes. This includes equipping our employees andmanagers with the skills to recognise, understand andmanage hidden biases across various diversity dimensions
through unconscious bias training.
Moreover, all employees are mandated to undergo
annual refresher training and attest to our Code of
Conduct yearly.

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Highlights

2023 DBS International Women's Day

This year, we have enhanced the Respect at Worksegment of our mandatory refresher training to equip
employees to identify behaviours constituting workplace
discrimination and harassment (such as verbal, physical,
sexual harassment) and learn strategies to prevent,intervene and speak up when facing or witnessing such
behaviours in the workplace.
To deepen awareness and understanding, we alsoorganised bankwide events such as DBS International
Women’s Day which featured a keynote speech by Minister
Shanmugam of the Singapore Ministry of Home Affairsand Law highlighting the mindset shifts that must occur
for further progress in women’s development. DBS CEO
Piyush Gupta and Group Head of Institutional Banking Tan
Su Shan joined Minister Shanmugam on an interactive
panel discussion about inclusive leadership and gender
equity in the workplace, moderated by Stefanie Yuen-Thio
who is the chairperson of non-profit organisation SG Her
Empowerment (SHE).
Building networks of support and learning
In collaboration with Lean In, a global community dedicatedto fostering workplace inclusion and advancing diverse
leadership, we launched the DBS Lean In Circles. These

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

DBS Lean In Circle Leaders gathering to share and learn from one anothercommunities are a safe space for colleagues to meet
regularly to mentor and support one another in achieving
their personal and professional goals.
In 2023, the Circles have gained momentum across ourcore markets, reaching over 600 participants. Women andmen have supported one another in goals like advancing
one’s career, managing work & family, building professional
confidence and honing skills such as personal branding.
Many also appreciate the opportunity to connect withcolleagues from different departments and learn from thediversity of experiences. Acknowledging the value of building
networks, we also facilitated networking opportunities for
our Circle leaders and members to meet professionals fromexternal organisations via our corporate membership in the
Financial Women’s Association of Singapore and partneringwith the Temasek Women’s Network.
This year, our Circle participants also volunteered theirtime to share their diverse career experiences with
underprivileged girls through events like DBS x SHE Sneak
Peek Human Library. Our technology colleagues actively
volunteered their skills and time to nurture young girls’
interest in STEM through volunteering programmeswith schools and community partners like Daughters ofTomorrow and launching DBS Tech For Girls.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

DBS Lean In Circle participants volunteering at DBS x SHE Sneak Peek Human Library

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Singapore Immersion Programme Trail Facilitator Training

Deepening foreign-local integration
In Singapore, over 90% of our workforce are Singaporeans
and we remain committed to building a strong pipeline of
local talent. That being said, we also welcome foreign talent
for roles where supply of local talent is limited.
With the support of National Integration Council (Singapore
Ministry of Community, Culture and Youth) since 2021,
we have been running our Singapore Immersion
Programme for new and tenured foreign hires to give
participants a deeper understanding of Singapore and build
a sense of belonging. The programme consists of immersive
lectures, networking sessions and experiential walking trails
in local neighbourhoods, facilitated by experts. Foreign staff
who are new to Singapore are paired with a local buddy toensure they receive support to understand cultural nuancesand facilitate their integration into the local community.
This year, we also trained DBS staff to become trail facilitatorsand share from their own experiences of integration into
new environments. These DBS facilitators are a mix offoreign and local staff who volunteered after attending past

Singapore Immersion Programme Immersive Lecture

year modules.
Many attendees of the Singapore Immersion Programme
have also been inspired to actively volunteer in the local
community by contributing their skills and time to various
causes such as mentoring tertiary youths, equipping seniors
with digital literacy skills and educating students withfinancial literacy skills.

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CEO Message

Highlights

Tracking progress via
our balanced scorecard
We adopt a balanced scorecard approach to set objectives,
drive behaviours, measure performance and determine
remuneration of our people, including our executives.
Within our balanced scorecard, we track key performanceindicators around employee engagement (including Diversity
and Inclusion), people development and being an employerof choice.
Read more on our balanced scorecard approach under “Our 2023 priorities”
in our Annual Report.

Engagement scores
Our employees have rated the bank positively for our
inclusive working environment.
We have also seen steady improvement in the areas related
to our inclusive work environment across the years.

AwardsIn recognition of our efforts in driving gender diversity, wewere included in the 2023 Bloomberg Gender-Equality
Index, marking the sixth consecutive year we havebeen listed since its inception in 2018. The global index
recognises companies devoted to transparently reporting
gender-related data and implementing best-in-classpractices to promote gender equality.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Table 1. My Voice survey results in 2023
My Voice Survey Dimension

2023

vs APAC Best Employers

vs APAC Financial Services Industry

Diversity & Inclusion Score

93%

+5

+13

Psychological Safety Score

92%

+4

+13

My Voice Survey

2023

2022

2021

DBS has a work environment thatis accepting of diverse backgrounds
and ways of thinking

93%

92%

91%

I can report an instance of unethicalconduct without fear of retribution
from anyone

94%

92%

90%

Table 2. Total number of employees by contract type and genderType of Contract

2023

2022

2021

Female

Male

Total

Female

Male

Total

Female

Male

Total

Permanent of
which:

19,63819,99339,631

16,743

18,213

34,956

15,63016,09731,727Full time

19,467

19,971

39,43816,552

18,19334,745

15,423

16,076

31,499Part time

171

22

193

191

20

211

207

21

228

Contract(1)

616

523

1,139

618

499

1,117

612

672

1,284

20,254

20,516

40,77017,361

18,712

36,073

16,242

16,76933,011Total

In addition to being awarded the #1 position in the
LinkedIn Top Companies list for Singapore, we were also
awarded the LinkedIn Talent Awards Diversity Champion
which acknowledges companies who initiate and inspire
meaningful conversations around diversity, inclusion,
belonging and equity on the platform.

(1)

Include only headcount on DBS’ payroll.
From Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Table 3. Total number of employees by geography and gender
Geography

Singapore

2023

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Table 5. Total number and rates of new employee hires and voluntary attrition by age group, gender, and geography
2022

2021

2023

Female

Male

Total

Female

Male

Total

Female

Male

Total

7,495

6,945

14,440

7,278

6,604

13,882

6,835

5,750

12,585Hong Kong

2,450

2,233

4,683

2,387

2,193

4,580

2,352

2,143

4,495

Rest of Greater
China(2)

5,153

2,328

7,481

2,835

1,392

4,227

2,713

1,306

4,019

South andSoutheast Asia(3)

4,980

8,780

13,760

4,702

8,313

13,015

4,193

7,375

11,568Headcount

Work force mix

No. of new hires(5)New hire rate(6)No. of voluntary
attrition

Voluntary attrition
rate(7)x < 30

7,708

19%

3,642

47%

931

14%

30 ≥ x ≤ 50

28,307

69%

5,662

20%

2,148

8%

x > 50

4,755

12%

594

12%

177

4%

Female20,254

50%

5,228

26%

1,438

8%

Male

20,516

50%

4,670

23%

1,818

10%

Singapore

14,440

35%

1,833

13%

916

6%

Hong Kong

4,683

12%

760

16%

521

11%

Rest ofGreater
China

7,481

18%

4,057

54%

346

6%

South andSoutheast
Asia

13,760

34%

3,182

23%

1,450

12%

Rest of the
World

406

1%

66

16%

23

6%

40,770

100%

9,898

24%

3,256

9%

By age group (x = age)

By gender

Rest of theWorld(4)
Total

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

176

230

406

159

210

369

149

195

344

20,254

20,516

40,77017,361

18,712

36,073

16,242

16,76933,011

By geography

Table 4. Total number of employees by geography and contract type2023
Type ofContract

Permanent

2022
Contract

Total

Full Time Part Time

Permanent

2021
Contract

Total

Full Time Part Time

Permanent

Contract

Total

Full Time Part TimeSingapore

14,31766

57

14,44013,74876

58

13,882

12,41682

87

12,585Hong Kong

4,661

1

21

4,683

4,544

1

35

4,580

4,460

2

33

4,495

Rest ofGreater
China

7,205

0

276

7,481

4,062

0

165

4,227

3,954

0

65

4,019

South andSoutheast
Asia

12,874

123763

13,76012,043133

839

13,015

10,346143

1,079

11,568Rest of the
World

381

3

22

406

348

1

20

369

323

1

20

344

39,438193

1,139

40,77034,745211

1,117

36,07331,499228

1,284

33,011

Total

(2)
(3)
(4)

Rest of Greater China includes Mainland China and Taiwan.
South and Southeast Asia includes India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, the Philippines and Bangladesh.
Rest of the World includes Australia, South Korea, Japan, United Arab Emirates, United States of America and United Kingdom.

Total(5)	Headcount and new hires include permanent and direct employees and excludes agency employees. In 2023, our employee base expanded through thesuccessful integration of Citi Consumer Taiwan. From this integration, 73% of the employees are female and 27% are male. In terms of rank, 52% are
Senior Officer and below, 47% Analyst to VP, and 1% are SVP to MD. In terms of age, 17% are <30, 67% are ≥30 to ≤ 50, and 16% are >50.
(6)	New hire rate is computed based on number of new hires divided by total permanent and direct contract employees as of December 2023.
(7)	Voluntary attrition rate is computed based on number of voluntary attrition divided by monthly average headcount for permanent employees only.
From Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Table 5. Total number and rates of new employee hires and voluntary attrition by age group, gender, and geography
2022

2021
Headcount

Work force mix

No. of new hires

New hire rate

No. of voluntary
attrition

Voluntary attritionrate

By age group (x = age)

Headcount

Work force mix

No. of new hires

New hire rate

No. of voluntary
attrition

Voluntary attritionrate

By age group (x = age)x < 30

7,170

20%

4,443

62%

1,388

23%

x < 30

5,870

18%

2,576

44%

1,347

28%

30 ≥ x ≤ 50

24,925

69%

4,841

19%

3,283

14%

30 ≥ x ≤ 50

23,427

71%

2,970

13%

2,298

12%

x > 50

3,978

11%

144

4%

215

6%

x > 50

3,714

11%

111

3%

144

5%

By gender

By gender

Female17,361

48%

3,786

22%

2,080

13%

Female16,242

49%

2,338

14%

1,644

12%

Male

18,712

52%

5,642

30%

2,806

16%

Male

16,769

51%

3,319

20%

2,145

16%

By geography

By geography

Singapore

13,882

38%

3,286

24%

1,760

13%

Singapore

12,585

38%

1,969

16%

1,439

12%

Hong Kong

4,580

13%

1,048

23%

811

18%

Hong Kong

4,495

14%

888

20%

706

16%

Rest ofGreater
China

4,227

12%

830

20%

431

11%

Rest ofGreater
China

4,019

12%

611

15%

466

12%

South andSoutheast
Asia

13,015

36%

4,203

32%

1,858

16%

South andSoutheast
Asia

11,568

35%

2,125

18%

1,152

17%

Rest of the
World

369

1%

61

17%

26

8%

Rest of the
World

344

1%

64

19%

26

8%

36,073

100%

9,428

26%

4,886

15%

Total

33,011

100%

5,657

17%

3,789

14%

Total

From Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Table 6. Breakdown of employees by employee category according to gender and age group
2023

2021

Headcount

SVP to MD

Analyst to VP

Senior Officer and Below(8)

Total

3,573

27,876

9,321

40,770

Headcount

SVP to MD

Analyst to VP

Senior Officer and Below

Total

2,850

22,306

7,855

33,011

By gender

By gender

Female

41%

49%

55%

50%

Female

40%

49%

54%

49%

Male

59%

51%

45%

50%

Male

60%

51%

46%

51%

By age group (x = age)

By age group (x = age)x < 30

0%

17%

33%

19%

x < 30

0%

16%

26%

18%

30 ≥ x ≤ 50

72%

73%

58%

69%

30 ≥ x ≤ 50

74%

74%

63%

71%

x > 50

28%

10%

9%

12%

x > 50

26%

10%

11%

11%

SVP to MD

Analyst to VP

Senior Officer and Below

Total

3,169

24,6238,281

36,073

Female

40%

48%

52%

48%

Male

60%

52%

48%

52%

x < 30

0%

17%

37%

20%

30 ≥ x ≤ 50

73%

74%

54%

69%

x > 50

27%

9%

9%

11%

2022

HeadcountBy gender

By age group (x = age)

(8)

Includes all permanent and direct contract employee headcount under DBS’ payroll
From Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTSManaging our environmental footprint
Redesign, rebuild and rethink for a better world

Our approach
At the heart of our operations lies a steadfast dedication
to managing our environmental footprint with a focus
on long-term sustainability. We continue to advanceour sustainability agenda through a proactive andmultifaceted approach that focuses on minimising negativeenvironmental impact rather than relying on reactive
measures like purchasing offsets.
By adopting a life-cycle perspective, we strive to identify
and address environmental challenges at every stage of
our operations. To address our carbon, energy, water andwaste footprint, we have developed a four-lever approachto systematically drive progress based on prioritising ourefforts in the following order:••••

Lever 1: Reduce consumption of resources
Lever 2: Generate renewable energy
Lever 3: Purchase green products and energyLever 4: Purchase Renewable Energy Certificates(RECs) and carbon offsets

Note on data quality and coverage
To improve our data quality, we are continually enhancing
our data governance, systems, and processes. This
includes conducting internal quarterly data reviews andexploring new technology to enhance data collection,
management, and visualisation.
Across our locations, our operational environmental datais collated from different sources, including metered data,utility bills, and landlord statements, amongst others.
Improving the reliability of data, particularly from third
party vendors, is an area we are focused on continuously
improving. All operational environmental data disclosuresin this report is subject to rigorous internal checking andreview, with selected indicators also subject to external
assurance as detailed on pages 97 to 101.
In 2023, DBS completed the acquisition of Citigroup Inc.’s
consumer banking business in Taiwan (Citi Consumer
Taiwan). However, the integration of Citi Consumer
Taiwan’s environmental data is still underway and istherefore excluded from the scope of our reporting on
operational environmental footprint.

Key initiatives
Reducing consumption of resources
Our first priority is to reduce resource consumption andincrease operational efficiency in our operations (e.g., officebuildings, bank branches, energy systems, etc.).
Energy reduction and management approach
We reduce our energy consumption through a series ofoperational energy reduction and efficiency initiatives. In
2023, we successfully converted four branches in India tooperate at a net-zero-energy level, namely, T Nagar, Dindigul(Branch Premises), Vashi and Nagapattinam branches.
We have designed net-zero-energy retrofits for theseand other offices in our portfolio, and we are assessing
implementation of these retrofits. We also consistently
install occupancy sensors for lights and cooling in all new
spaces whenever feasible, in line with our principle of using
energy only where necessary. At present, over 80% of ourmanned retail branches in Singapore are certified Green
Buildings.
In 2023, our operational energy consumption was 121,357
MWh and our carbon emissions were 53,446 tCO2e. While
this marks an increase from the previous year, we havecontinued to neutralise our carbon footprint throughinvesting in high-quality carbon offset projects that are
independently verified and certified. While offsetting, ourstrategy remains to prioritise efforts that improve energy
efficiency, increase the production and use of renewables,
and implementing sustainable practices across ouroperations to minimise our footprint.

Green Mark Platinum certification for over 80% of
our manned retail bank branches
Since 2017, we have been pursuing opportunities toredesign our branches to be more resource-efficient andcarbon-light by:• Integrating intelligent occupancy-based lighting
and air-conditioning systems to minimise energy
consumption.
• Implementing water-efficient fittings and dedicatedmeters to minimise and monitor water consumption.
• Introducing green features and innovation such asvideo teller machines that are equipped with energysaving light dimmers and sensor controls to enhance
efficiency and customer service.
We will continue to integrate environmentally conscious
practices at every level as much as possible suchas supply chain sustainability, waste reduction andmanagement initiatives through materials and fittings
used in the design of the space.
In 2023, 33 out of the bank’s 41 manned branches werecertified Green Mark Platinum which is a pinnacle rating
under Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority(BCA) Green Mark, an internationally recognised green
building certification scheme.
Our target is to have 100% of our branches certified
Green Mark Platinum in Singapore by the end of 2024.

Read more about our approach to carbon offsetting on page 62.

From Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Table 1: Our energy and carbon footprint(1)2023Singapore

Hong Kong

China

Taiwan2023
India

Indonesia

International
Centres

Total

EnergySingapore

Hong Kong

China

TaiwanIndia

Indonesia

International
Centres

Total

CarbonTotal energy consumption (MWh)(2)65,832

10,041

5,480

6,394

19,313

12,6701,627(3)121,357

Energy intensity by total income(MWh/ SGD million)

4.91

3.12

8.88

11.69

29.76

19.37

1.90

6.09

a) From non-renewables
		(MWh)(4)64,816

10,041

5,480

6,331

19,135

12,408

1,627

119,838b)	From renewables
production (MWh)

1,016

0

0

63

178

262

0

1,519

0

10,1005,500

019,20013,000047,800Purchased Renewable Energy
Certificates (MWh)(5)

Carbon(6)Total carbon emissions, marketbased (tCO2e)(7) = [a + b(ii) + c]

37,402

2,299

2,180

3,245

3,886

3,084

1,350

53,446

Total carbon emission intensity,
market-based, by total income(8)(tCO2e/ SGD million)

2.79

0.72

3.53

5.93

5.99

4.72

1.57

2.68

	a) Scope 1 (tCO2e)(9)217

55,000Total carbon equivalent net of carbon offsets purchased, market-based (tCO2e) =[a + b(ii) + c – Purchased carbon offsets]-1,554

Water reduction and management approach(14)(15)
We manage our water consumption in our bank branches and offices in Singapore by adhering to building standards,
such as the BCA Green Mark. In three of our Singaporean buildings, DBS Asia Hub (DAH), DBS Newton Green (DNG), andDBS Asia Central (DAC), we maintain an efficient water management system in place that uses waste condensate water
reclamation. Condensate water is also collected and used for cleaning at DAH and DAC as well as irrigation at Newton and DAH.
Table 2: Water consumption data
2023
Singapore

Hong Kong

China

TaiwanIndia

Indonesia

International
Centres

Total

Total water consumption (m3)(16)

58,306

12,556

5,679

40,475

27,79835,909-180,724

Total water consumption intensity
by total income (m3/ SGD million)

4.35

3.91

9.20

73.99

42.83

54.90

-

9.06

	a)	Municipal water
consumption from water
stressed regions (m3)(17)

0

0

4,403

0

25,6483,320-

33,37158,306

12,556

1,276

40,4752,150

25,442-140,206	c)	Well water consumption
from water stressedregions (m3)

0

0

0

0

0

2,215

-

2,215

	d)	Well water consumption
from non-water stressedregion (m3)

0

0

0

0

0

4,932

-

4,932

Water
22

0

0

147

196

0

582

	b) Scope 2 (tCO2e)(10)		i. Gross (location-based)

16,265

4,980

2,068

2,653

11,852

7,185

794

45,797		ii. Net (market-based)

16,265

0

0

2,653

0

0

794

19,712	c) Operational Scope 3 (tCO2e)20,920

2,277

2,180

592

3,739

2,888

556

33,152		i. Data centres (tCO2e)10,690

1,195

1,289

569

1,729

2,520

0

17,992(11)

Purchased carbon offsets (tCO2e)		

ii. Storage facility energy(tCO2e)

179

0

0

0

0

0

0

179

		

iii. Waste (tCO2e)

302

82

16

23

49

31

0

503

		

iv. Business flights (tCO2e)

8,902

943

870

0

1,383

0

		

v. Ground transport (tCO2e)

841

57

0

0

578(13)

337

0

1,813

		

vi. EV shuttlebus (tCO2e)

6

0

5

0

0

0

0

11

556 12,654(12)	b)	Municipal water
consumption from nonwater stressed regions (m3)

From Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

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CEO Message

Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Waste reduction and management approach(1)(14)(18)
We track and divert waste from landfills and incinerators in addition to managing waste at the source through managed
procurement. In 2023, we started regular waste audits in primary food service areas as well as our pantry areas. We also
installed AI based recycling-help-systems and monitors in several areas to test the efficacy of machine-based behaviour
feedback for waste and recycling.
We continue to implement eWaste tracking across all markets, and eWaste collection points for employees in several
markets. In our DAH cafeteria, an AI-food waste tracking and reduction system is being deployed to record how and whatfoods are being wasted through smart meter technology attached to food waste bins. This real-time data is used to analysetrends and better anticipate production quantity in a bid to decrease overall waste.
Table 3: Waste data
2023
Singapore

Hong Kong

China

TaiwanIndia

Indonesia

International
Centres

Total

Total waste generated (tonnes)

719.4

209.2

60.8

75.5

121.8

124.8

-

1,311.5a) Total composted (tonnes)

34.3

1.6

21.0

0

15.1

22.8

-

94.8

b) Total recycled (tonnes)

109.5

52.1

9.3

32.3

14.0

44.8

-

262.0

c) Total incinerated (tonnes)

575.6

0

0

43.2

0

38.7

-

657.5

0

155.5

30.5

0

92.7

18.5

-

297.2

Waste

d) Total landfilled (tonnes)

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Notes:(1)	Operational environmental footprint data does not include Citi Consumer Taiwan’s portfolio as the integration of environmental data is still underway
at the point of publication.
(2)	Energy consumption includes purchased electricity, purchased chilled water cooling to buildings and outsourced data centres, and combusted energy
on site in India. It also includes LPG consumed in one Singapore kitchen and genset power in Singapore, India, Indonesia, and energy from petrol owned
vehicle in Singapore. The total energy consumption is 436,880 GJ.
(3)	Electricity use for International Centres is included in this report. These international offices are located in Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, South
Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, the United Kingdom, Japan, and Australia. Energy was estimated for our offices in US, UAE and Myanmar.
(4)	Energy from fuels included LPG in Singapore, diesel and petrol gensets in India, diesel gensets in Indonesia, diesel and UCO biodiesel gensets in
Singapore; and one owned petrol vehicle in Singapore, converted to energy. The total energy from fuels was 1,200 GJ.
(5) Purchased RECs are shared across China and Hong Kong, which are part of the same renewable electricity market.
(6) Follows the requirements of GHG Protocol Corporate Standard and GHG Corporate Value Chain Standard and uses operational control to consolidate GHG emissions.
(7)	As with previous years, we report Scope 2 emissions based on both location-based and market-based approaches. Under the market-based approach,our Scope 2 emissions were reduced from purchased RECs in Hong Kong, China, India, and Indonesia.
(8)	Carbon emission intensity is reported as tCO2e/S$M in total income.
(9)	Scope 1 emissions include direct carbon emissions from backup diesel and petrol generators, LPG from kitchens, and fugitive emissions from fire retardants
and refrigerants including FM200, SF6, R-410a, R-22, R-134a, R132, R-32, and NOVEC-1230 – all converted to CO2 equivalent. We also included both fossil
fuel diesel, UCO biodiesel genset fuel, and LPG for cooking in Singapore. UCO biodiesel was expanded to all gensets in Singapore owned by DBS.
(10)	Scope 2 emissions include purchased electricity, purchased chilled water energy – converted using efficiencies from the central chilled water suppliers,
and energy for cooling offices and branches. Energy data streams are converted to CO2 equivalents using emission factors in "International Energy
Agency: CO2 Emissions from Fuel Combustion 2023-Year 2021" for Australia, Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar,
Philippines, South Korea, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America and Vietnam, average of emission factors in "HK
Electric Carbon Calculator" and "CLP Group 2022 Climate-related Disclosures Report" for Hong Kong, "Energy Market Authority Chapter 2: Energy
Transformation" for Singapore, and "Energy Administration Ministry of Economic Affairs R.O.C. 2021 Electricity Carbon Emission Factor" for Taiwan.
(11)	Scope 3 emissions include outsourced shuttle bus travel, inter-office mail transport for Singapore, limousine service, cash loading transport, executive
transport, carbon equivalent from electric vehicle transport in China, electric vehicle transport for facilities management (new in 2022), employee air
travel as arranged by travel agencies Ctrip and Egencia, energy used in outsourced data centres, carbon equivalent from waste disposal (in Singapore,
Hong Kong, China, Indonesia, Taiwan, and India minus waste from Lakshmi Vilas Bank (LVB) coverage area) including incineration, landfilling,
composting, general recycling, and e-waste recycling; carbon equivalents from storage facilities in Singapore. We did not include employee groundtransport emissions from the LVB portfolio in India. We do not include any carbon footprint from items that were repurposed, gifted, or sold. Currently
our scope 3 does not include any other upstream carbon from operational procurement.
(12)	This figure refers to scope 3 emissions of business flights attributed to Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, and China; based on aggregated source data
provided by our travel agencies, CTrip (for China) and Egencia (for the remainder). This figure also includes carbon emissions from our courier DHL, forthe first time this year.
(13) Employee ground transport data from LVB is not included in scope. We will work to incorporate these indicators in the future.
(14)	Our International Centres (ICs) are mostly single offices in office buildings in their respective cities, and we do not yet have access to landlord water andwaste data. The water and waste footprint of our ICs is not material to our overall consumption figures. We do not include water and waste data from our ICs.
(15)	In 2023, we included LVB water use indicator data into these tables under the India market, in addition to electricity consumption, diesel genset
consumption, petrol genset consumption, and PV production disclosed since LVB’s incorporation in 2022.
(16) All water consumption reported is considered freshwater according to GRI 303; 1,000 cubic metres (m3) is equivalent to one megalitre.
(17) Water stress was assessed using WRI.org tool 'aqueduct water risk atlas' where "stressed" - ">40% at risk".
(18) Waste data from LVB is not included in scope. We will work to incorporate these indicators in the future.

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Generating renewable energy
As our second priority, we aim to generate renewableenergy to replace more carbon intensive energy sources.
Our total renewable energy production rose from 1,362
MWh in 2022 to 1,519 MWh in 2023.
In 2023, we grew our renewable energy production with anadditional solar installation on CK street in India. This added
15 kW of capacity. Looking ahead, we endeavour to continue toscale our renewable energy production and consumption.

Purchasing RECs and carbon offsets
Despite our efforts to reduce consumption, as well as
generating and purchasing renewable energy, gross carbon
emissions still persist in our operations. While we explore
future opportunities to avoid, reduce and replace theseresidual carbon emissions, we continue to compensate forthem through the purchase of RECs and carbon credits.
DBS’ approach to carbon credits
Carbon credits can be an efficient tool to unlock capitalrequired to transition our global economies to a netzero future. There are various nature- and technologybased solutions that facilitate the avoidance, reduction,or removal of GHG from the atmosphere, all of which cangenerate carbon credits to support the net-zero transition.
We recognise that carbon credits can be controversial.
There is fear that carbon credits from poorly managed
carbon-bearing projects can overstate the offsetting
activity, and by so doing, reduce the pressure for grossdecarbonisation. The Voluntary Carbon Markets (‘VCMs’)
have also faced various challenges this year such asallegations of fraudulent credits which has undermined
confidence in the market. Nonetheless, there were positive
developments such as the establishment and releaseof standards for high-integrity carbon credits, as well as
guidance for companies who use them.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

In 2023, we strengthened our approach to purchasing
RECs and carbon credits by updating our Carbon Offset
Guide, improving the governance and processes aroundthe selection and purchase of Energy Attribute Certificates(e.g., RECs) and carbon credits. We applied the enhanced
processes to mitigate all residual emissions in ouroperations after our energy reduction and renewableenergy initiatives.
 ECs: We purchased a total of 47,800 MWh of RECs to
R
compensate for all 100% of grid electricity consumption
across our core markets outside of Singapore and Taiwan.
 arbon credits: We purchased 55,000 tCO2e of highCquality carbon avoidance credits from a nature-based
project. These projects deliver positive climate impacts but
also support important social and economic development
opportunities for local communities, further contributing to
the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Read more on our data on energy and carbon emission on page 60.

In 2022, we updated our Carbon Offset Guide, which covers
our general approach to carbon credits and provides agovernance framework related to the purchase of carbon
credits for the purpose of offsetting remaining operationalgross emissions at DBS. In 2023, we further updated ourguide to strengthen our due diligence approach, clarify ourselection criteria and widen the scope of eligible registries
we look at, taking into consideration market developments.
Specifically, we have included reputable third parties suchas carbon-credit rating agencies and CIX into our selection
process and decision tree. We will leverage the expertise of
these organisations to understand the level of risks facedby the projects we are looking at.

Example of carbon offsetting project:

As part of our overall process, we are committed to use thebest available information at the time of purchase to ensurethat we select high quality and impactful carbon credits frommeaningful projects. Given the rapidly developing landscapein global VCMs, we will continually review our Carbon Offset
Guide to ensure it remains sufficiently robust.

Total volume of credits purchased 55,000(tCO2e)Project name

Katingan Peatland Restoration and Conservation Project

Project synopsis

The Katingan Restoration and Conservation Project protects and restores 149,800 hectares ofpeatland ecosystems, to offer local communities sustainable sources of income, and to tackle global
climate change. The project lies within the districts of Katingan and Kotawaringin Timur in Central
Kalimantan Province and covers one of the largest remaining intact peat swamp forests in Indonesia.

Type of project

REDD+

Carbon avoided / removed

AvoidedCarbon standard

Verified Carbon Standard

Location of projectCentral Kalimantan, Indonesia

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Case study highlights
1. DBS Giving Tree
Christmas is a time for celebrations and giving, but it alsocomes with an unwelcomed guest: waste. All over theworld, the festive season generates a significant amountof waste, from discarded wrapping paper, to gift bags andeven food waste.
This year, we’re raising awareness on gifting sustainably
through online gameplay and physical engagement –from the choice of raw materials, combining them intomeaningful gifts, to wrapping them with eco-friendly
materials.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Educational digital gameplay
The digital gameplay brings gamers through three minigames to learn how to manage in their waste this festive
season by composting, creating and wrapping eco-friendly
gifts for the festive season.
Physical giving tree in our own spaces
The DBS Giving Tree is made in collaboration with local
partner Triple Eyelid, using discarded industrial waste suchas pine wood and mahogany reclaimed from pallets.
The wooden décor are toys assembled by our DBS colleagues
from wood pallets provided by local non-profit Ground-Up
Initiative (GUI). After the festive season, these toys will
benefit children in need, under TOUCH Community Services.
After Christmas, this tree will be repurposed into functional
high tables around DBS.

DBS Giving Tree

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Educational digital gameplay for employees

Figure 1 Sustainability features in the Better World Café

2. Better World Café

3. Sustainable Transport

We continue enhancing the sustainability features of ourBetter World Café, with a primary focus on conserving
energy and minimising waste. Here are some initiatives thatexemplify our ongoing efforts in 2023 to further advance thecafé’s sustainability journey:

DBS aimed to reduce emissions from our employeetransportation services by converting to moresustainable modes of transportation.

• Introduced incentive to encourage colleagues to bring
their own cups when taking away drinks.
• Introduced the Reusable Mug Library, which allows
visitors or colleagues to borrow mugs when they ordertakeaway drinks, instead of using single-use cups. Mugs
are crowdsourced from DBS staff.
• Switched out our melamine crockery to wares made fromrice husks. These wares composed of rice husks andstarch, can be kept within the biological cycle at the endof the wares’ useful life.
• Shortened receipts issued at ordering kiosks by almost
50% to reduce our paper use.

In 2023, DTI progressively switched from cabs to buses
throughout the year. In total, 106 cabs were removed
while 22 buses were added to the fleets. As a result,
total fuel consumption from the conversion dropped by
63% from 55,112 L to 20,358 L as well as a reduction in
total distance travelled from 673,000 km to 61,000 km
thereby reducing fuel consumption too.

DBS Tech India (DTI)

DBS Newton Green (DNG)
In line with our commitment towards net zero
operations, we introduced an electric shuttle bus at DNG
in August 2023.

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Sustainable procurement
Managing our supply chain sustainably

Supplements the Group
Procurement Policy andStandard documents

Group Procurement
Standard

Sustainable Sourcing
Principles (SSP)

Extends throughout
the procurement cycle,
from identificationand specification ofrequirements to theawarding of contracts
to suppliers

Outlines the expectations
we have of our suppliers
in upholding health andsafety, environmental
sustainability, businessintegrity and ethics, aswell as in complying withDBS Human Rights Policy

Key initiatives
Accelerating a restorative enterprise
Since 2021, the Restorative Procurement Framework(“Framework”) has guided our partnerships with suppliers,
as we work towards building a restorative enterprise. The
Framework brings together various sustainability aspects– circularity, carbon, biodiversity, and the broader social
agenda. We integrate these restorative principles directly
into our procurement processes, including our SSP andapproach to screening, prioritising, assessing and engaging
our suppliers. This promotes not only “doing less harm” butalso “doing more good” across our supply chain.

Support businesses with a social(people) mission to uplift the lives
and livelihoods of communities:• Social mission integrated into businessmodel, (e.g., training and inclusive
employment of persons with disabilities
and other marginalised individuals)• Monitors and reports on impact createdas a result of running the businessyOutlines our strategy forthe purchasing of goods
and services tomeet DBS’ requirements
while minimising risks
and maximising value

d reducti
on
man
e
D

Ca
r

• Reduction in the energy intensity• Absolute reductions in GHG emissions,setting the stage for a net zero or
net positive future• Carbon oﬀsets do not countRestorative
procurementalciGroup Procurement
Sourcing Guide• I nvesting in capacity building for a more resilient
supply chain	To ensure a diverse and efficient supply base that iscontinually supported through supplier engagement
and training

ar
l
u

So

Group Procurement
Policy• Adopting a risk management approach	To utilise a comprehensive set of processes and tools
in an iterative manner to manage our supply base

• Materials: post-consumer, renewablematerials and energy• Production: circular process,re-manufacturing• Distribution: everything-as-a-service,
re-sell• Usage: sharing platforms,
useful life extension• Disposal: recycling, reverse logistics

Transition to a low carbon future
by sourcing for innovative solutions in
our supply chain that reduces industry
GHG emissions:

De

man

d re d u ct

s it

Our procurement activities are managed in accordance with
our formal policies and processes:• Accelerating a restorative enterprise	To grow restorative procurement together with our
ecosystem partnersnbo

As a leading financial services group in Asia, we purchasea diverse range of products and services, including
professional, software, real estate, and corporate services.
Guided by our Vision to be the Best Bank for a Better World,
we integrate environmental and social considerations into
procurement decision-making, alongside financial factors.

Keep Earth’s resources in use for as longas possible through 11 levers:

io n

er

Our supply chain management programme includes:Circ

Our approach

Bi

i
od

v

Preserve the wealth and varietyof the natural world:• Restore ecosystems, including
net-increasing biodiversity inseveral key biomes• Assist in the recovery of an ecosystemthat has been degraded, damaged,
or destroyed

Figure 1: An illustrative framework of how DBS conducts restorative procurement

Restorative approach in action
During the recent closure of multiple premises in Indonesia due to branch relocations or mergers, we successfullycollected over 100 pieces of security equipment, including CCTV cameras and keypad readers. Instead of discardingthese items, we adopted a restorative approach by reusing them for new installations, ongoing projects or as
replacements for damaged items in existing branches. This not only reduced use of resources, but also resulted in costsavings of over SGD 10,000.

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Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Adopting a risk management approach
At DBS, we conduct due diligence on our supplier base andadopt a risk-based approach to the governance of sustainability
in our supply chains (see Figure 2). We utilise a comprehensive
set of processes and tools in an iterative manner to govern
our supplier base, which consists of thousands of regional
suppliers across diverse spend categories.
Screening:This year, as part of a pilot programme, we have introduced
additional ESG parameters to the sustainability criteria
embedded within our supplier evaluation metrics. Thisenhancement enables us to evaluate suppliers on theircommitment to internationally recognised responsible andsustainable business practices, including specific factors suchas environmental and workplace health and safety standards,
project specific carbon footprint, employee diversity anddevelopment metrics and supply chain governance.
To enhance objectivity, fairness and transparency within
the sustainability criteria during supplier evaluations, wehave also crafted the criteria to be more quantifiable andverifiable. This reduces the risks of subjective interpretation.
We have rolled this out through a pilot programme, which
specifically targets higher risk category items with higher
value contracts. This pilot programme allows us to test andrefine the effectiveness of the expanded sustainability criteria
within a focused scope, prior to its official implementation.
We also continued to employ our SSP as the primary
screening mechanism for all new suppliers as part of theonboarding process. In 2023, we successfully onboarded
close to 800 suppliers across our core markets, withmore than 99% of new suppliers aligned with ourenhanced SSP. Going forward, onboarded suppliers who
do not commit to align with the SSP will be enrolled into
our sustainability ratings exercise, which will help us tomitigate any potential risks and monitor the sustainability
performance of these suppliers.

Sustainable Sourcing
Principles (SSP)

ScreenSustainable
SupplyChain

Prioritise

Supplier segmentation
Broad coverage of sustainability basics
that signiﬁcantly reduces our risk

Sustainability riskmateriality categories

Fit for purpose attention - focusing
our eﬀorts where it matters mostScope 3 supply chain
emissions

AssessRaise awareness and gain insights into
ongoing sustainability performance,
via an evidence-based approach

Supplier ratings

EngageEnable actions through improvement
initiatives, dialogues and learning journeySupplier day
Supplier excellence awards
Training & Development

Figure 2: Our approach to govern sustainability in our supply chains

Uplifting our Sustainable Sourcing Principles
As part of our ongoing uplift of our SSP, we made significant
strides to further promote the principles of restorative
procurement amongst our suppliers. We require suppliers
to implement appropriate programmes or policies tomanage their environmental impact. We have also added
a clause to encourage suppliers to go beyond doing lessharm and adopt restorative approaches that create a net
zero or net positive impact on the environment and society.
To address human rights, we have incorporated
enhancements to secure commitments from our suppliers
for the equitable remuneration and health and safety ofworkers, and the well-being of local communities.
Additionally, we emphasise our requirement for suppliers
to take appropriate measures to remediate any adverse
human rights and environmental impacts that may result
from their products or services. This commitment extends
further to include a grievance mechanism for addressing
and resolving any human rights impacts that may arise in
our supply chain.

These enhancements underscore our dedication toadvancing sustainability and ethical business practices
within our procurement processes. We encourage our
suppliers to actively share DBS' SSP with their next-tiersuppliers and business partners to create a broader impact
and foster alignment with responsible practices throughout
the supply chain.

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Prioritise and assess:
With thousands of suppliers in our supply base, we needto prioritise and focus our attention on the most important
areas. We do this by taking a risk-based approach to our
supplier segmentation analysis. We derive suppliers’ risk
levels based on our aggregate spending with the suppliers,
suppliers’ country of operations and the category of goods
and services provided by the supplier.
Since 2022, we have partnered with a global sustainability
ratings provider, EcoVadis, to assess high risk suppliers.
Suppliers are evaluated based on their commitments
to environment, labour and human rights, ethics, andsustainable procurement. Evaluated suppliers receive ascorecard detailing an appropriate corrective action plan
and areas for improvement.
As a recognition of their efforts, DBS has extended theacknowledgement period for suppliers achieving a Silver,
Gold, or Platinum EcoVadis medal beyond the standard
one-year validity stipulated by EcoVadis. Our network on the
EcoVadis platform now consists of over 200 DBS supplierswith scorecards adhering to the validity period defined by
DBS. By expanding our supplier network on the platform,
we enhance transparency in our supply chain sustainability
performance. This supports our commitment to fostering a
responsible and resilient business ecosystem.

As part of our supplier engagement initiatives, we actively
work to enhance the capabilities of our suppliers andfortify our partnerships to build a restorative enterprise.
In our recent sustainability workshops for suppliers, weunderscored the significance of our SSP, highlighted
forthcoming modifications, and offered our suppliers the
chance to seek clarifications. This proactive approach
prepares suppliers for upcoming enhancements andfosters more collaborative partnerships.
Read more about how we are embedding human rights due diligencein our procurement practices on the next page.

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Embedding human rights due diligence in our
procurement practices
We are committed to doing business with respect forhuman rights through our sustainable procurement
practices. Our first line of defence is the requirement for
all new suppliers to be screened by our SSP. As part of our
SSP uplift mentioned on page 65, we have incorporated
enhancements to the human rights clauses within
the principles by drawing on standards and guidance
set by leading international frameworks, including
those established by the United Nations (UN) and theInternational Labour Organization (ILO).
Specifically, our enhanced SSP require that suppliers:

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking• R espect employees’ rights to associate freely andcollective bargaining• Act ethically, prohibit bribery, corruption, practicetransparency and accountability
We also emphasise the requirement for suppliers to takeappropriate measures to remediate any adverse humanrights impacts that may result from their products orservices.
As a second layer of defence, we continue to perform
annual supplier assessments on suppliers identified as highrisk, through our partner EcoVadis, on multiple aspects
including human rights, labour practices, and ethics.

• C hampion human rights by prohibiting humantrafficking, slavery, harassment and abuse• Prohibit child labour• Promote diversity and inclusion• Protect the health and safety of workers• Uphold fair and equitable remuneration of workers

As part of our supplier engagement initiatives, we actively
work to enhance the capabilities of our suppliers onsustainability matters.

Engage:We view engagement as an integral part of our ongoingcollaboration with suppliers. As part of our engagement
strategy, we aim to support and work with our suppliers to
improve their sustainability performance.

Investing in capacity building for a more
resilient supply chain

In 2023, we issued corrective action plans to eight suppliers
falling within EcoVadis’ lowest sustainability performancelevel. Additionally, we actively seek to improve thesustainability of our supply chain by enrolling suppliers who
are assessed as high risk to participate in our sustainability
training workshops.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

To protect us against supply chain disruptions amidst
uncertainties from geopolitical and economic situations,in 2022 we established a hardware resiliency framework
to drive visibility, agility and resilience in supply chain
processes. Through this framework, we focus on proactively
engaging key vendors to gain insights into their delivery leadtimes and supply risk mitigation strategies. This enables us
to better detect any potential risks of delivery delays andwork with our stakeholders to source for alternate solutions.
In addition, we also continue to improve our processes
to meet market standards and ensure adherence to ourdelivery commitments. We are committed to continuously
update the framework based on evolving vendor structuresand relationships influenced by globalisation. This
comprehensive approach underscores our dedication
to maintaining operational excellence and delivering
exceptional service to our customers.

Read more on our approach to screening, prioritising, assessing andengaging suppliers on page 65, and about our overall approach to humanrights at DBS on page 13.

In 2023, we held a sustainability training workshop
on restorative procurement, covering essential topics
such as circular procurement, life cycle analysis, DBS’sustainability approach as well as addressing the upcoming
revisions to our SSP and sustainability evaluation criteria.
With participation from over 25 suppliers and 70 DBS
employees from group procurement services, including
sourcing managers, this training workshop highlighted ourcommitment to promoting sustainability across our supply
chain. Moving ahead, we will continue our approach ofengaging and training suppliers to adapt to the market’s
evolving sustainability requirements. This remains key for
us in managing potential risks and improving the overall
transparency of our supply chain.

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Technology resilience (including cyber security)
Fortifying resilience and security

Our approach
Technology is critical to our business strategy andprocesses. It enables a seamless banking experience forour customers and is at the heart of our strategy to drive
growth. However, the growing complexity of our technology
stack and network infrastructure, coupled with rising cyberthreats, present a growing risk for our business.
In 2023, the occurrence of digital disruptions that interrupted
our service served as a catalyst for further enhancing ourresilience. To improve service reliability and ensure theresiliency of our technology infrastructure, we embarked
on a comprehensive roadmap in May 2023 through theTechnology Risk Management Uplift Programme (T-Up)
which is chaired by the CEO. This roadmap will culminate in
improved service availability and reliability.
In addition, DBS remains resolute in our commitment
to fortify our cyber security capabilities against the everevolving landscape of cyber threats, ensuring the deliveryof safe and secure banking services to our customers.
The ongoing targeting of our customer base by cyberthreat actors who employ sophisticated tactics like social
engineering, phishing scams, and mobile malware, coupledwith the escalating risk of cyberattacks on our online
banking services and technology infrastructure amid
geopolitical tensions, underscores the imperative for us tocontinue to invest in and explore the latest advancements incyber security technologies.

In light of this, we are not only building security andresiliency into the architecture, design and deploymentof technology, but we are also building it into our culture,ensuring this is factored into every decision we make.
Through T-Up, we are improving and tightening ourprocesses in:••••Change management
System resilience
Incident management
Technology risk governanceWe also continue to maintain robust cyber security governanceand approaches to ensure overall technology resilience.

Key initiatives
Change management
DBS has a microservices architecture, which is supported
together via a number of third-party systems. While thisis the preferred architecture for most modern technology
companies, the one challenge it poses is that a bug in one
part of the ecosystem could result in previously unknown
problems elsewhere. This underscores the importance of
doing more rigorous and comprehensive testing before weput any software into production. We have since tightened ourchange management controls and created a near-production
test environment to allow for more robust testing of key
services before going live with new changes or releases.

System resilience
We recognise that customers expect to have access to key
services such as balance enquiry and digital payments inan uninterrupted manner. To ensure that these services
have minimal downtime, for critical applications, we havenow built a hot standby capability to supplement existing
active-active configurations. Additionally, today, some of ourservices are delivered through common/ shared systems,
which can potentially result in single points of failure. To
prevent this, we are decoupling these shared systems at
both the front and back ends so that key services are always
available on at least one channel. This will be completed by
Q1 2024.
To complement our engagement with vendors, we haveestablished 10 Centres of Excellence (COEs) that house
expertise across different domains. The COEs will drive
standardisation of architecture and reuse of assets, upholdquality service delivery, and develop competency for sharedapplication and services.
Our mobile applications have been enhanced to detect andremove the presence of malware. Our cyber security control
environment is regularly tested and attained the highest tierof preparedness for the Cyber Trust mark.

Incident management
When incidents arise, we have to recover services more
quickly. Having early warning indicators, and a process
to review internal alerts proactively, enables us to takepreventive actions in a timely manner. In the last year,
having built comprehensive diagnostic capabilities, real-timemonitoring data and alerts are now being leveraged as partof our incident management process. This encompasses acomprehensive view starting with the end-to-end customer
journey through the applications and infrastructure levels
to detect and drill down issues in real time and identify
solutions swiftly. We have centralised our command centre
to enable faster identification, triaging, and initiation ofrecovery protocols. Playbooks for technology operations
teams and Crisis Situation Managers have been updatedwith a sharper focus on rapid restoration of alternate
systems to minimise interruption of our digital services.
These capabilities are available in Singapore and will berolled out across all our markets in 2024.

Technology risk governanceTo strengthen technology risk governance and oversight,
effective 1 November 2023, the bank formed a new subcommittee of the Board Risk Management Committee (BRMC)
called the BRMC Technology Risk Committee. The bank alsotransferred the Technology Risk Management team to the
Risk Management Group, reporting to the Chief Risk Officer,
to enhance independent checks and balances. We alsobolstered our Site Reliability Engineering team with newleadership and established a dedicated Quality Assurancefunction, the latter which serves as an independent layer ofchecks on change management within Group Technology.

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Highlights

Cyber security
Cyber security remains a cornerstone of our technology
resilience approach as we continue to digitalise our businessand operations.
We continue to achieve external verifications andcertifications that underscore our dedication to maintaining
high standards of information security. This underscores ourcomprehensive approach to establishing and maintaining
effective information security practices and technology risk
management. Some of our 2023 highlights are:Achieved ISO27001 certification for information
security management systems

Achieved Singapore Cyber Trust Mark (CTM)
certification at the Advocate level

Our robust data protection policies and practices
are also certified by TÜV SÜD, an external
independent certification bodyIn 2023, we continued to improve our cyber security
capabilities through:Investing in our cyber defence capabilities
We enhanced our cyber defence capabilities through thefollowing:• E nhanced and secured our mobile applications using
solutions such as Runtime Application Self-Protection(RASP), ensuring a continued safe banking experiencefor customers. The enhanced control detects thepresence of malware, prevents unauthorised access oncompromised devices, and guides DBS customers toremove malicious mobile applications.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking• Implemented secure file transfer technologies to facilitate
secure collaboration with external parties, and establishedsecure storage of sensitive data for our developers.
• Reviewed our key cyber security technology stack
to identify opportunities for improvement, ensuring
alignment with the evolving cyber threat landscape. This
led to the refreshment of our:• Web isolation to enhance our network's resilienceagainst sophisticated web-borne threats.
• Data protection controls to strengthen overall dataprotection framework and ensure compliance withregulatory standards.
• Application security testing technologies to identify
and remediate vulnerabilities in the early stages of thedevelopment lifecycle.
• Expanded the implementation of key controls, such as data
monitoring and application whitelisting, to further safeguard
our critical and key systems. This targeted expansion
broadens the protective scope against potential threats,enhances our detection and response capabilities, andensures the integrity and availability of essential systems.
• Continued investment in machine learning andautomation to enable our security operation centre
to adequately handle the year-on-year increase in
the volume of security events and alerts. Our security
operation centre monitors cyber-attacks and incidents
including data breaches.
Strengthening cyber incident response
In addition to investing in cyber security controls, weequally prioritise the development of robust cyber incident
response and recovery capabilities. In 2023, we:• Implemented deep packet inspection of our web traffic
to detect and prevent sophisticated and evasive cyberattack tactics and techniques.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking• V alidated more cyber defences and controls against the MITRE
ATT&CK framework, simulating the modus operandi of 262
threat actors and 915 cyber-attack techniques. This ensuresthat our incident response capabilities are aligned withthe latest threat intelligences and are adapted to theemerging and ever-changing cyber exploits.
• Continued to expand the scope of our monitoring as we
expanded the adoption of public cloud and new cloudtechnologies, automated the response and investigationof cyber security events and alerts, and enhanced
the use cases for our cyber security incident detection
and mitigation.
• Validated the efficacy of our incident detection andresponse capabilities in our adversarial attack simulation
exercise where the attack attempts were promptly
detected and neutralised.

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Staying vigilant through knowledge
sharing and ecosystem partnerships
The interconnected nature of cyber threats and theircontagion effect necessitates a comprehensive andcollective response from the financial industry and the wider
ecosystem. Collaboration with industry partners, peer banks,
regulators, law enforcement, and government agencies is
integral to tackling prevailing cyber threats.
In view of mobile malware targeting our customers, weparticipated in an industry effort to share best practices
in mobile application security. For example, we implement
and operate Runtime Application Self-Protection (RASP) tosafeguard our mobile applications against malware.

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Under the leadership of the Monetary Authority of Singapore(MAS), the industry is actively working to establish an informationsharing platform (Project COSMIC). This platform aims tofacilitate timely communication and swift responses toemerging financial crimes, including money laundering andterrorism financing.
Read more about Project COSMIC in our Preventing financial crime chapter.

In addition, in collaboration with MAS and peer banks, weplanned and conducted an industry wide cyber security
incident response and recovery exercise which simulated
a ransomware attack on key trading systems and thesubsequent disruption to our trading and settlement
operations. The exercise provided the opportunity for ourbusiness, technology and operations colleagues to test andvalidate their respective incident response, communication
and recovery plans and refine our incident response
protocols. This will allow us to enhance our preparedness
and effectively mitigate real-world cyber threats.
DBS is also committed to fostering a robust security
awareness and culture among our employees. We
established a Security Awareness Cybrfit Programme toreinforce adherence to the Bank's policies, standards, andcyber security best practices. Implemented across theentire organisation, it features phishing simulations, cybersecurity training including specialised training for developers
within the Bank, and an enhanced annual cyber security
gamification campaign. The programme garnered participationfrom over 24,000 staff members. Additionally, DBS hosted
its annual Application Security Conference with attendancefrom developers. This event underscores our dedication tostaying informed and proactive in tackling dynamic cybersecurity challenges linked to emerging technologies.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Enhancing cyber security governanceOur robust cyber security capabilities and management areunderpinned by strong governance and oversight. Cyber
security is included in the scope of governance of the newly
created BRMC Technology Risk Committee. Additionally,
cyber security will attain enhanced independent oversight aspart of the Technology Risk Management team’s transfer tothe Risk Management Group.
In response to the Cyber security Code of Practice issued
by the Cyber security Agency of Singapore, we havealigned our internal control measures and practices toensure compliance to the guideline. We enhanced therisk awareness of our technology staff by implementing atargeted technology and cyber risk training curriculum. Thiswas delivered through a combination of online eLearning
modules and in-person seminars across our six coremarkets. The training covered a range of technology risk
management and cyber security topics. This ensures thattechnology teams are familiar with the evolving cyber threat
landscape, industry technology and cyber security risk
management regulatory regimes and the Bank’s control
measures and practices. We further hosted the application
security conference which was attended by 875 participants.
This platform provided an opportunity to update ourdevelopers on key advancements in the areas of software
testing and Generative AI.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS#CyberWellness programme for the community
The DBS #CyberWellness programme leverages thebank’s expertise to empower employees of social
enterprises and charities in the aspect of cyber security
awareness. Through the comprehensive training
provided, participants are equipped with knowledge to
identify and effectively respond to cyber threats, thereby
contributing to a safer digital environment.
Since the programme's inception in 2019, we havesuccessfully trained 14,622 participants from charities,
social enterprises, SMEs and institutes of higher learning.
Delivered through an online platform, participants canaccess essential security content at their convenience,with 6,421 participants enrolled in 2023. This is ayear-on-year increase of 36%.
Driven by the commitment of our DBS People of
Purpose volunteers, we have extended this skills-based
volunteering initiative to Hong Kong, with 13 social
enterprises signing up for the programme in 2024. The#CyberWellness initiative stands as a testament to DBS’commitment to fostering a safer digital environment,
thereby making a tangible impact on the community byequipping a diverse range of participants with crucial
cyber security skills.

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Data governanceProtecting and being responsible with data

Our approach
At DBS, fostering trust in the way we use and safeguard
data remains a critical governance imperative. With therapid development in Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) capabilities, responsible use of data is more important
than ever. We are very cognisant of the delicate balance ofharnessing AI’s vast potential benefits while addressing its
ethical dilemmas.
To ensure the responsible management of data and AI
adoption, DBS is committed to:• K eeping data safe and secure
To strengthen our data protection capabilities, data
access controls, and dial up data surveillance to reduce
the risk of data leakage and misuse.
• Using data responsibly
To build trust through fair, ethical, and responsible useof data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) by continuously
enhancing our DBS PURE (Purposeful, Unsurprising,Respectful, Explainable) framework and AI Governanceprocesses and controls.
• Upholding trust through our privacy posture
To place privacy at the heart of our product design andservices, we rigorously safeguard the confidentiality andsecurity of data.

Key initiatives
Keeping data safe and secure
Keeping data safe and secure in 2023, we continued to build
on our core data access and security capabilities:• E nterprise Data Security Framework (EDSF) provides
a platform agnostic data-security-as-a-service that can beleveraged by any application requiring data security. EDSF
is continually enhanced with new features.

• A rculus is our next-generation in-house built data policy
engine. It serves as a data security layer that controls
access to data in our Enterprise Data Platform. Arculus
has been designed to be scalable and enable regional
expansion whilst enhancing data security and privacy
engineering capabilities.
	Arculus is able to orchestrate the dynamic protection ofsensitive data using certified encryption methodologies
to safeguard our most important data. Furthermore, it
enables data access at a persona-level, with datasets
fully secured and instantly accessible to analytics users
based on the profile of their personas. This enables the
secure delivery of accurate data to the right individuals
at the right time. Another critical feature of Arculus is its
increased ability to capture logging information of data
accessed by analytics users as well as the contents of thequeries performed. These enable us to significantly uplift
our surveillance capabilities with more sophisticated use
cases. In 2023:• We expanded Arculus data access controls to our
hybrid-cloud environments, facilitating analytics usecases that can leverage the capabilities of public
clouds, including Gen AI• We introduced new features in Arculus, including theoption to generate regional data views through ourself-service portal, thereby enhancing the efficiency ofspecific regional analytics teams• We successfully conducted a proof-of-concept exercise
for a new privacy engineering technique known as
synthetic data. This method creates a 'synthetic twin'of a real dataset, replacing all personal information
with artificial values while preserving key statisticalproperties. Consequently, privacy is significantly
enhanced, while the data's utility for specific analytics
use-cases is maintained• Looking ahead, we will continue to build out newcomponents, such as an Arculus Control Room which
will provide real-time anomaly detection capabilities,
proactive support, self-healing and enhanced
surveillance features

Using data responsibly
Our Responsible Data Use (RDU) framework is a core pillarof the Bank’s overall Data Management approach, ensuring
our use of data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) is lawful, ethicaland fair. The framework addresses three core questions,can we use it, should we use it and how we use it.

Data Foundations – Can we use it?
The use of data and AI systems is becoming morepervasive and embedded across various industries
and sectors. Equally, data related risks are growing andrequire attention at senior management and Board level.
Our policy framework provides a robust approach to thefoundational elements of data management such as data
privacy, data sovereignty, data quality and data security.
The goal is to ensure that any potential use of data strictly
adheres to relevant laws and regulations. Our governancearchitecture ensures that data related risks are managed at
an operational, senior management and Board level.

Datafoundation

PURE

Model
governanceControl 1
Can we use it?

Control 2
Should we use it?

Control 3
How we use it?

All data in DBS

Data use cases
powered by models

Data use cases

Data Security (OSO),
Data Compliance (LCS),
Data Management (CDO)

Purposeful, Unsurprising,Respectful, Explainable

Risk-Based Approach –Methodology, Testing,
Validation, Documentation,
Monitoring & Review

Key initiatives and messages of the RDU framework

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Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

In 2023, we enhanced our governance architecture tobetter align key committees overseeing data-related risks.
Specifically, our Data Governance Committee (DGC) andResponsible Data Use (RDU) Committees will now become
sub-committees of Group Operational Risk Committee(GORC) and Group Risk Executive Committee respectively.
In turn, data-related risk will be escalated to the Board Risk
Management Committee (BRMC) via these sub-committees
in 2024. This governance structure increases the awarenessand oversight of data related risks from an operational level
through to Board Level.

Model Governance (e.g., Artificial
Intelligence) - How we use it?
We are dedicated to strengthening our governancepractices in the development and deployment of advanced
AI-based systems, ensuring fairness, transparency,
interpretability, and accountability in our use of artificial
intelligence and machine learning (AI/ ML). The recent rise of
Gen AI capabilities has introduced new risks and heightened
existing areas of concern. To address this, we are implementing
additional guardrails and controls as we gradually explore,
test, and adopt these emerging technologies.

DBS PURE Framework – Should we use it?
It is imperative for us to consistently address the ethicaldimensions of our use of data to ensure we remain alignedwith the Bank’s core values.

At DBS, our AI adoption is guided by three principles: data
safety, responsible utilisation and stringent privacy. The
bank has engineered two in-house solutions: Advancing
DBS with AI (ADA) for unified data governance, and ALAN(1),an award- winning AI protocol for scalable and rapid AI
deployment.

Our DBS PURE framework continues to serve as the Bank’s
ethical compass in ensuring that our use of data is(P)urposeful, (U)nsurprising, (R)espectful and (E)xplainable.
To uphold the PURE principles amid evolving regulations,changing customer expectations, and societal norms,
we have enhanced our PURE portal to ensure automatic
notifications to all relevant parties when data use cases aredue for review.
We furthered our commitment to training and awarenessby introducing the digital PURE practitioner module. The
move to digital based content increased the accessibility ofthe training to our DBS colleagues across our core markets.
Furthermore, we have also included a PURE learningcomponent to our new joiner curriculum to underline theimportance of responsible data use to all DBS employees,
irrespective of their role.
The PURE process ensures we continuously strive to build
trust with our customers, employees, stakeholders and thecommunities we live and operate in.

(1)• ADA centralises data, ensuring governance and quality• ALAN accelerates AI model creation and deployment• ADA and ALAN, when used together, enable our teams
to swiftly build and deploy AI models, enhancing ouroperations and decision-making capabilities. This results
in a higher degree of hyper-personalisation in theservices we offer to customers
ADA and ALAN incorporate specific governancerequirements and stringent controls (e.g., data classification,
data reconciliation, approval workflows, etc.) to ensure
essential governance considerations are addressed
throughout the development lifecycle.
Overall, responsible AI and data use are guided by the RDU
Framework and a cross-functional RDU committee. We also
continue to work closely with regulators and industry bodies
to gradually enhance our overall approach and strengthencore governance controls.

ALAN was awarded ‘Best in Future of Intelligence’ at the IDC Future Enterprise Awards (Singapore) in 2021.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Generative Artificial Intelligence (Gen AI)
The rapid emergence and evolution of Gen AI in late 2022
have garnered global attention, spanning Governments,
Academia, Corporates, Regulators, and the generalpublic. Predictably, the response and approaches tothe introduction of this powerful new technology were
diverse. Initial enthusiasm was quickly met with a series ofrestrictions, lawsuits and national bans on Gen AI solution
deployment, conflicting perspectives from notable figuresand entities, and the early implementation of Gen AI
guidance and regulations across numerous jurisdictions.
By the end of 2023, a more robust consensus emerged
regarding the responsible utilisation of Gen AI, emphasising
the optimisation of the technology’s capabilities andbenefits while effectively addressing any inherent risks.

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

As an added layer of protection, we have also:• E stablished a cross functional Responsible AI (RAI)
Taskforce comprising senior and experienced subject
matter experts from across many of our core functions,
including cyber security, legal and compliance,data science, technology and infrastructure, data
management, and risk management. This ensures that
we can leverage the appropriate expertise to thoroughly
evaluate our use case pilots and provide guidance on
mitigating any potential risks.
• Utilised our existing PURE and AI/ ML governanceframeworks to ensure our use cases are ethical, lawful,
regulatory compliant, aligned with the Bank’s core values
and are appropriately owned, approved, and managed.
• Ensured each of our Gen AI use pilots have also been
evaluated and approved by our Responsible Data Use
At DBS, we believe that embracing Gen AI has the potential(RDU) Committee as well as our RAI Taskforce. Thisto benefit not only our customers and employees but
gives added assurance that Gen AI use cases havealso society at large, aligning with our commitment tobeen holistically assessed and approved by senior
help people ‘Live more, Bank less’. Specifically, the exciting
management and subject matter experts prior to any
opportunities presented by Gen AI, such as simplifying andmeasurable deployment.
supporting everyday tasks, as well as creating new content,
services, and products, are applicable across all industries. • Implemented a Gen AI programme structure with afocus on developing bank-wide capabilities essential for
Nevertheless, we are mindful of the novel risks and thescaling the use of Gen AI. Emphasis is placed on areas
potential exacerbation of existing ones linked to Gen AI.
such as people and change management, building
In embracing Gen AI solutions, DBS follows a cautious andenterprise capabilities, value realisation, responsible AI,
measured approach. Our initial experiments and pilots withand technology enablement. A regular cadence has also
Gen AI are primarily internal and designed with high levels
been established with Group Management Committeeof human oversight and incremental progression. This
(GMC) members to ensure senior management direction
approach allows us to explore the potential of Gen AI whileand oversight.
identifying possible risks and ensuring that we have thenecessary safeguards and controls to mitigate these risks.

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AI/ ML Governance
Despite significant focus on exploring the opportunitiesof Gen AI, we continued to enhance our governanceefforts and controls in managing our more traditional
AI/ ML solutions. Building on the progress we havemade in previous years, enhanced fairness controls
for higher materiality models and use cases have been
operationalised. This leverages much of the guidance andtoolkit developed as part of the MAS FEAT(2) (Fairness,
Ethics, Accountability and Transparency), and Veritas(3)project which DBS has been proud to participate in since
inception. To supplement this, we have also provided
enhanced fairness practitioner training to our data
science teams as part of the rollout.
We have also introduced Model Monitoring guidelines
and requirements, focused on ensuring ongoing model
performance across various dimensions, including model
accuracy, output stability, data quality, fairness, and data
drift. Rollout and adoption will be incremental and will
focus initially on higher materiality models and all newmodels in 2024.
As part of the Project Veritas book of work, an additional
document ‘From Methodologies to Integration’ waspublished. This paper provides an overview of practicalchallenges and lessons learned from the seven lead
consortium members of the project, including DBS, on
implementing and integrating the Veritas methodology
on Responsible AI within their organisation andgovernance processes. It serves as a useful reference
for other Financial Institutions (FIs) as well as non-FIs
who are also working towards developing their own AI
Governance approaches. DBS remains enthusiastic aboutengaging in and contributing to collaborative initiatives
aimed at fostering ongoing improvements in responsible
AI, with the goal of benefiting all stakeholders.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Training our people
Consistent with previous years, we have continued to focus
on building data management awareness and capability
through investing in training our people. We now have seven
Novice and eight practitioner modules on our DBS DigiFY
platform. In 2023 alone, more than 36,000 modules havebeen completed by 26,000 employees. Since the launch of
our first Data Management Training module back in 2019,
over 118,000 modules have been successfully completed(excluding employees who have since left the Bank).

Upholding trust through our privacy posture
Data Protection Trustmark certification
Our Data Protection Trustmark certification (DPTM) fromthe Infocomm Media Development Authority of Singapore(IMDA) underscores our commitment to privacy. It is anindependent external validation that we have robust dataprotection policies and practices in place, and this gives
further assurance to our customers and stakeholders thatthey can confidently trust us with their data.
Upholding our Privacy Posture
We are committed to not taking the trust placed in us lightly
and to always take an emphatic and respectful approach
towards data privacy. This commitment is reflected in how
we collect, use, and disclose personal data, and entrenchedin the following principles:• Ensuring Transparency
	We limit our collection, use and disclosure of personal
data to what is reasonably necessary for our services.
This is illustrated through our openness about our data

(2)
MAS FEAT is a set of principles covering the four dimensions to promote ethical and responsible use of Artificial Intelligence and data analytics in finance.
(3)	Veritas is a MAS-led multi-phased collaborative project that aims to enable financial institutions to evaluate their Artificial Intelligence for Document
Automation (AIDA)-driven solutions against the MAS FEAT principles.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

processing, which has been detailed in our Privacy Policythat is published on our website. Our Privacy Policy
is updated regularly to provide timely notification ofdevelopments or for consistency with any changes inlaws and regulations.
• Respecting the privacy of our stakeholders	
We are reasonable in our use of personal data. We will
only process personal data in accordance with applicabledata protection laws. This includes ensuring that there
is always a legitimate basis for the collection, use anddisclosure of personal data.
• Intentionally embedding data protection
impact assessments
We have embedded data protection impact assessments
in our governance review processes before the launchof new products and services, or when sharing thesedata via outsourcing and procurement arrangements.
These assessments are designed to evaluate relevant
data protection risks and implement necessary controls.
Contractual obligations are also imposed on recipientsof personal data to ensure that they are obligated toprotect and limit the use of the personal data shared.
• Adhering to established data breachmanagement processes
We have implemented data breach management
standards and processes to ensure the prompt
identification, escalation, and management of data
breach incidents. Notifications are provided to therelevant authorities and affected data subjects as
required, in accordance with applicable laws andrequirements.

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS• Training employees regularlyEmployees, including new hires and contract staff,
undergo regular training to reinforce sensitivities aroundthe proper management of personal data. This trainingemphasises strict compliance with established handling
protocols and processes for personal data.
Regulatory & industry engagement
As the regulatory landscape evolves to address the increasingawareness of privacy concerns and advancements intechnologies, we uphold the perspective that privacy and dataprotection regimes across jurisdictions are interconnected.
It is crucial that we stay agile in adapting to new trends
and requirements while carefully recalibrating our privacy
policies and practices as necessary.
While monitoring emerging regulatory requirements anddevelopments, we remain vigilant about significant changes
to data governance risk themes and updates to data protection
standards or controls implementation. These updates arecommunicated to the Group Operational Risk Committee,
Risk Executive Committee (Exco) and our Board committee.
Furthermore, we continue to lend our voice to help shape
regulatory thinking in the formulation of data protection
and privacy legislation, as well as development of data
governance themes.

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Highlights• O ur CEO remains a member of Singapore’s Advisory
Council on the Ethical Use of AI and Data. The Advisory
Council advises and collaborates with the Singapore
Government on the responsible development anddeployment of AI, aiding the Government in formulating
ethics standards, reference governance frameworks,
and publishing advisory guidelines, practical guides, andcodes of practice for voluntary industry adoption.
• In 2023, we actively supported the IMDA’s efforts in its
promotion of its DPTM programme. We recognised its
significance in expanding the community of organisations
independently certified in the safeguarding and handlingof personal data, and in turn broadening the base andstrengthening trust within our society.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Project MindForge
In early 2023, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)initiated an industry-focused Gen AI Project to drive
innovation and responsible use of Gen AI for the financial
service industry. Project MindForge explores the risks andopportunities of Gen AI and aims to develop a clear andconcise framework for the responsible use of Gen AI within
the financial sector. The objective is to address common
industry-wide challenges and bolster risks management
through the strategic utilisation of Gen AI. MAS establisheda consortium of financial industry companies, leading
technology providers and consultancies to drive thisinitiative.

This is an important first step for the industry in terms
of providing a starting point to better understand thepotential application and risks associated with Gen AI atsuch an early stage of evolution.

The successful conclusion of phase one of the projectwill culminate in the publication of a white paper. This
document will delve into the benefits of Gen AI within
the banking context, present a comprehensive Gen AI
risk framework tailored for the financial services industry
and assess the application of existing FEAT principles
and Veritas methodology to effectively address Gen AI
risks. It also intends to provide guidance on infrastructure
considerations when implementing Gen AI enabled
solutions.

Project MindForge was showcased at the Singapore Fintech
Festival in November 2023, where an executive summary of
the whitepaper was released for the event. The complete
whitepaper is anticipated to be published in early 2024,
serving as valuable framework for the broader industry
venturing into Gen AI adoption.

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Moving forward, Project MindForge may consider
opportunities to broaden its scope by engaging financial
institutions from the insurance and asset management
sectors. This expansion aims to ensure comprehensive
and full coverage of the Gen AI risk framework within theentire financial industry. The consortium may also expand
the thematic scope of Gen AI experiments to include areas
such as anti-money laundering, sustainability, and cybersecurity.

Following the model of MAS FEAT and MAS Veritas, DBS
welcomes the opportunity to collaborate with regulatory
and industry partners in advancing more resilient andsustainable responsible SAI practices.

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Preventing financial crime
Protecting customers from financial crime

Our approach
The risks of financial crimes are rising in Asia, impacting
individuals and businesses across the region. As a leading
financial institution, we recognise our responsibilities
towards financial crime prevention. We play a vital rolein maintaining the integrity of the financial system andsafeguarding its users within the broader ecosystem. We
fulfil these responsibilities through a holistic approach thatemphasises robust risk governance, vigilant surveillance,and effective control measures. This ensures the protectionof our businesses, partners, and customers from financial
crime. As part of our approach, we leverage data analytics
and technology to continuously drive and improve our risk
management effectiveness.
We are fully committed to conducting our businesses
professionally and in accordance with all applicable laws,
rules, regulations, and the highest ethical standards. Ourcommitment is embodied in our Group Code of Conduct,and supported by:• R obust governance and oversight on financial
crime matters• Leveraging data and technology toenhance surveillance• Tight execution of controls• Collaborative partnerships with the wider industry

Key initiatives
Robust governance and oversight on financial
crime matters
Financial crime prevention is a longstanding organisational
priority. Our Group Operational Risk Committee regularly
reviews metrics and reports on financial crime risks, withmaterial issues and emerging trends reported to the
Risk Executive Committee and Board Risk Management
Committee. Our Group Financial Crime and Security
Services team (Group FCSS) is responsible for and oversees
the financial crime compliance activities for the Group,
including fraud investigations and financial crime advisory.
Our governance framework incorporates training, advisory,
enforcement, and compliance with bank-wide policies andstandards covering anti-money laundering (AML), combating
the financing of terrorism (CFT), proliferation financing,
sanctions, fraud, bribery, and corruption. We continuallystrengthen our governance framework to safeguard ourbusinesses and customers against financial crime. Our
framework, policies, and standards are regularly reviewed
to ensure robustness and compliance with regulatory
requirements, with clear guidance and requirements aroundvarious Know-Your-Customer (KYC) aspects including Customer
Due Diligence (CDD) process requirements, risk assessment
matrices, document, and record keeping guidance.
AML, CFT and Sanctions Policy and Standard
Our Risk Management Framework provides clear guidance
to staff on aspects including, but not limited to, customer
due diligence, enterprise-wide risk assessment, customer
screening, transaction screening and monitoring, suspicious
activity reporting, and training. As part of this framework,
our AML and CTF policies and standards provide specificguidance on prevention and detection of money laundering,terrorist financing, sanctions evasions, and proliferation
financing risks. This guidance encompasses:a.	Compliance with Applicable Sanctions Laws andRegulations such as MAS Sanctions & US Sanctions,and the prohibition of relationship or transactions withdesignated persons or jurisdictionsb.	Identification of higher-risk businesses, including thoserelated to arms and virtual asset service providersc.	Definition and handling of complex corporate structures,along with indicators of shell company red flagsd.	Requirements for suspicious transaction reporting,accompanied by examples of suspicious transactionse.	Extra due diligence procedures for exceptional scenarios,
such as significant cash transactions and non-face-to-faceverificationf.	Completion timeframes and necessary approval levels for
CDD reviews
g. Time periods for the retention of KYC documentation
Anti-Fraud Policy and Standard
Our Fraud Management Programme underscores ourdedication to effectively safeguarding our organisation,customers, shareholders, and staff against fraud, apersistent and significant risk within the realm of financial
crime. Our framework focuses on the following elements:
Identification and Assessment of Fraud Risks, Fraud Controls
and Monitoring, Investigation, Remediation, and Reportingand Analysis. Senior management also maintains meticulous
oversight on fraud matters.

Anti-Bribery and Corruption Policy and Standard
Our Anti-Bribery and Corruption Programme embodies risk
assessment, due diligence, controls and monitoring, gifts
and entertainment requirements, and reporting. Bribery
and corruption can take many forms, including the provisionor acceptance of kickbacks, political contributions, andcharitable contributions amongst others.
We provide clear guidance on the bank’s stance through the
Policy and Standard, such as:a. Definition and examples of bribery and corruptionb.	Definition of prohibited activity, including actions such as
promising payment to induce an individual to provide an
improper advantagec.	Due diligence requirement on Business Associates andIntermediaries
d. Training requirements for new employees

The Anti-Fraud Policy and Standard aims to advise on
various aspects of the Bank’s Anti-Fraud framework,
including, but not limited to:a.	Roles and responsibilities with the Group’s various linesof defenceb.	Strategy and governance in our Fraud Management
Programmec. Definition of internal versus external fraud

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DBS Speak Up
DBS Speak Up is our whistleblowing programme. It
provides a safe environment for both internal andexternal parties to raise genuine concerns on potential
misconduct on the part of DBS, its staff, suppliers or third
parties relating to DBS.
DBS Speak Up services include:• A dedicated hotline number, website, email address,
fax number and postal address for the reporting ofsuspected incidents of misconduct and wrongdoing• Specialist call centre operators with knowledge ofindividual organisations• Expert forensic investigators to analyse reports• Timely reporting of incidents and their corrective
actions to dedicated representatives
Any report made is treated with the strictest confidence
and every effort will be made to maintain confidentiality.
Retaliation against anyone who, in good faith, seeks
advice, raises a concern of misconduct, or cooperates in
an investigation is strictly prohibited.

The bank adopts a zero-tolerance
approach towards bribery andcorruption in connection with anyof our business dealings.

(1)

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Leveraging data and technology
to enhance surveillance
Our financial crime risk mitigation programme employs avariety of artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ ML)capabilities to complement rules-based engines. Thisapproach establishes a multi-layered surveillance strategy
aimed at safeguarding our customers from financial crime.
Customer due diligence has been further enhanced withdynamic analytical reviews based on changes in static dataor transactional behaviour.
Read more about our approach to ethical AI governance in our Data
governance chapter.

Improving risk surveillance and controls execution
Money launderers and terrorist networks constantly
evolve their methodology and tactics to conceal their illicit
transactions and activities. Our risk surveillance systems are
tuned to effectively detect them from micro to macro levels,
through an extensive suite of risk surveillance tools. Thesesurveillance tools have been enhanced and augmented
through data analytics and AI/ ML over the years to enable
more robust detections of suspicious transactions andidentification of bad actors.
We have incorporated the Macro Payment Flow Dashboard
into our processes in recent years, enabling us toconcentrate on the trends of significant payment flows or
those displaying unusual patterns. The platform enables
a holistic overview of fund flows at both geographical andbank level. Suspicious flows undergo data analytics to identify
customer networks and transaction patterns, facilitating
thorough analysis and scrutiny. This approach enables thedetection and mitigation of bad actors at scale, surpassing
the capabilities of traditional monitoring. In conjunction withour comprehensive suite of Financial Crime Dashboards,
we conduct monitoring across multiple sets of metrics,
including KYC operations, customer portfolio distribution,and key risk typologies. This approach ensures the prompt
identification and addressing of any emerging risks.

All existing employees are mandated to complete the refresher training, unless they are granted exemption due to valid reasons such as, but not limited
to extended leave (e.g., medical leave, maternity leave, sabbatical leave), and employee resignation.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Since initiating our phased deployment of the Dynamic
Review Assessment (DRA) in 2021, full operationalisation
has been achieved for the corporate banking and privatebanking segments in Singapore. DRA leverages data analytics
to analyse changes in customer profiles, transactional
patterns and account activity, allowing a risk-based approachto conduct customer due diligence. This has enabled ahighly efficient way of allocating resources, allowing analysts
to focus on customers with behavioural red flags andchanges in a timelier and more targeted manner.

In September 2023, we announced new anti-malware
security measures aimed at enhancing customer protectionamid fast-evolving scam typologies and fraud tactics.
When a customer logs into DBS/ POSB digibank on theirmobile device, the tool will restrict access to the banking
application if it detects the presence of malware or
malicious applications downloaded from unverified sources.
Additionally, access is limited if there is ongoing screensharing on the device.

The various dynamic sanctions regimes prevalent in thecurrent global landscape require a robust and balanced
approach to sanctions risk management. We continually
evaluate our risk appetite and control measures to ensure
full compliance with relevant regulations and sanctions. We
leverage data and AI/ ML tools to enhance our sanctions
risk monitoring, utilising tools like the Macro Payment Flow
Dashboard to identify potential sanctions evasion flows.
This enables us to improve the efficiency of transaction
screening, allowing for more effective resource allocation.

Tight execution of controls

Protecting our customers from scams
Amidst the rising adoption of digital payment channels,
scams persist as a threat in Singapore. As part of ourcommitment to combat scam and protect customers, weemploy a multi-prong approach, ensuring a secure banking
environment for our customers and bolstering confidence indigital payments.
We continue to evolve and strengthen our fraud prevention
measures in response to the ever-changing modus operandi
of fraudsters. The use of AI/ ML enhances our fraud surveillancecapabilities. This includes the deployment of a machinelearning model for improved detection of fraudulent
transactions and the utilisation of behavioural biometrics touncover unauthorised mobile banking activities.

While technology and data analytics continue to drive
greater effectiveness and efficiency in financial crime
prevention, training and awareness continues to be
instrumental. We equip our employees with the knowledge
to identify financial crime risks and empower them to takethe necessary actions to mitigate such risks. Appropriate
escalation channels are also set up to facilitate timely
intervention on complex issues.
All new hires, including part-time and contract staff, must
undergo mandatory training on financial crime prevention.
This training covers areas such as AML and Sanctions, AntiFraud, Anti-Bribery & Corruption and the Code of Conduct.
It includes relevant case studies to cultivate effective risk
management and decision-making skills. Similarly, existing
employees also need to complete mandatory training(1).
Every bank employee is required to annually attest that they
understand, observe, and will promote compliance withboth the spirit and letter of our Code of Conduct. In 2023,
we also included an anti-bribery and corruption pack as partof the induction exercise for new board members.
As part of our financial crime programme, we conduct
regular quality assurance testing and audits to ensure
proper execution of our AML/ CFT controls. Quality
assurance testing is conducted on customer due diligence,transaction monitoring, and customer screening reviews toevaluate whether these controls are executed in accordancewith established protocols.

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Highlights

Collaborative partnerships
with the wider industry
Financial crime prevention requires the collective effortof regulators, the financial industry, consumers, and law
enforcement agencies. We actively engage in public-private
sector collaborations between financial institutions and law
enforcement agencies, contributing our expertise. Additionally,
we maintain ongoing collaborations with our ecosystem
partners to defend the integrity of the financial system.
Some of our key partnerships and collaborations include:• A ML/ CFT Industry Partnership (ACIP) – a privatepublic collaboration which brings together financial
institutions, regulators, and law enforcement agencies
to address key and emerging money laundering andterrorism financing risks in Singapore.
• MAS-led Project COSMIC(2) – a digital platform
facilitating the sharing of key customer and transaction
information on bad actors amongst financial institutions,where we are one of the six participating banks. This
accelerates the detection and disruption of key financial
crime activities by bridging the information gaps between
financial institutions, which are abused by criminals formoney laundering purposes.
• DBS digiVault – allows customers to set aside and “lockup” a certain amount of funds that cannot be transferredout digitally. Launched in November 2023, DBS digiVault
reinforces the bank’s commitment to protecting ourcustomers. For example, a one-month joint operation
with the Singapore Police Force in June and July 2023
disrupted more than 1,400 active scam cases andmitigated over SGD 20 million in potential scam losses.
This was achieved through a proactive and victim-centric
approach that utilised technology and data tracing to
identify scam victims and alert them promptly.

(2)

Approach

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Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Harnessing data analytics for a holistic
scam management strategy
The scale and sophistication of scams in Singapore continue
to grow significantly, further compounded by the rising
issue of money mules. Scam prevention and money mules
hunting have become increasingly intertwined, requiring aholistic strategy and dedicated effort along both lines.

In 2023, we accelerated the use of our data analytical
approach to identify money mule networks and clusters by
analysing fund flows, addresses, and common login devices.
This enables the detection and swift action against money
mules at scale and speed. We heightened our efforts in
We have invested significantly in enhancing our proprietary identifying money mules through various fronts, such
fraud surveillance engine over the years and continue to do as expanding our fraud surveillance system to monitor
mule activities and utilising transaction data to identify
so. In 2022, we successfully incorporated an AI/ ML model
into our fraud surveillance systems to uplift effectiveness in and flag suspicious behaviour related to money mulling.
fraud detection and continued to refine the model in 2023. The Anti-Mules Team (AMT) was established in 2023 tocomplement the AST and mitigate fraud risk holistically. The
Our approach to scam management utilises data
AMT is dedicated to detecting and disrupting money mulesystematically to monitor fraud trends and emerging
activities, leveraging our extensive array of data tools andtypologies. This allows our fraud surveillance systems toapplying effective mitigating controls.
be subjected to a rigorous regime of continual calibrations
In our ongoing efforts to combat scams, we emphasise theand enhancements. Our dedicated Anti-Scam Team (AST)
importance of vigilance and surveillance. Additionally, we
operates round the clock to help customers manage
are committed to enhancing digital and human interactions
potential fraud transactions. As the first bank to cothrough public engagement and supporting scam victims.
locate an AST staff with the Singapore Police Force’s AntiThe introduction of advanced security features like DBS
Scam Command (ASC) in 2021, we have expanded ourcollaboration by adding two more members between 2022 digiVault further empowers our customers to protect
and 2023. This augmentation strengthens our partnership themselves against fraudsters.
with ASC in the ongoing efforts to combat scams andperform loss recovery actions.

 Project COSMIC – Collaborative Sharing of Money Laundering/ Terrorism Financing Information & Cases

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Fair dealing

Driving good conduct and fair outcomesOur approach
Fair dealing is the foundation of our business. Our
customers trust us to put their interest first when we
conduct business and interact with them.
At DBS, we adopt a customer-centric approach tocontinuously improve the way we deliver our products
and services. We consistently do the right things at thehighest level of integrity to uphold our customers’ trustand confidence in us. We strongly believe in inculcating aculture of fair dealing among our employees to ensure that
we operate in a transparent and ethical manner with ourcustomers. We accomplish this through the following:• E mbedding fair dealing principles inour governance framework• Consistent delivery of fair dealing outcomes• Empowering employees to deliver quality
customer experience

Key initiatives
Embedding fair dealing principles
in our governance framework
Our board and senior management set the tone fromthe top to instil a strong culture of fair dealing across theGroup. We believe that a robust governance framework witha strong focus on fair dealing and conduct is essential toinculcate a keen sense of trust in the organisation.
The Group Fair Dealing and Conduct Committee (FDCC) is
chaired by the Group CEO and oversees fair dealing andconduct matters across the Group. The FDCC deliberates

relevant issues and topics for decision-making, including
relevant governance metrics, to ensure consistent deliveryof fair dealing and conduct outcomes. The FDCC submits
reports to the Board Risk Management Committee every
quarter to keep the board apprised of our strategy in driving
fair dealing and good conduct among our employees.
The Culture and Conduct Dashboard is a key tool for ourboard and senior management to effectively discharge
their responsibilities in promoting and embedding thedesired fair dealing and conduct outcomes. The Culture
and Conduct Dashboard provides appropriate information
to gauge the culture of the organisation and the potential
conduct risks we are exposed to. This helps the board andsenior management determine whether our frameworkand controls are effective. For example, the number ofFair Dealing-related complaints across core markets aretabled regularly at the FDCC forum to identify any adverse
trends or systemic concerns. We take appropriate actions
in response to incidents or trends to ensure that we drive
good fair dealing and conduct outcomes and maintain ourcustomers’ trust.

Consistent delivery of fair dealing outcomes
We play a vital role in supporting our customers to makesound financial decisions. Our customers rely on us forrelevant information, quality advice and appropriate
recommendations. By focusing on acting in the best interestof our customers, we are committed to conducting ourbusiness in a responsible manner. We demonstrate thisthrough our interactions with our customers:• C ommunicating with our customers in a clear andtransparent manner• Understanding our customers’ risk profile and financial
needs to tailor quality advice accordingly• Ensuring the suitability of financial products and services
for target customer segments• Responding promptly and honestly to our customers’
requests and feedbacks

charges since 2022. This is done in the spirit of fairness andfinancial inclusion, allowing such individuals to meet basic
banking needs such as receiving salaries and paying bills,
whilst we deploy enhanced monitoring measures to mitigate
risks of abuse.

We subject the range of financial products we distributeto a rigorous due diligence process. A comprehensive
approval and governance framework is put in place tooversee the suitability of our products and services for ourcustomers. This includes ensuring that pricing and customer
engagement practices are in line with regulatory standards
and industry best practices. Our product due diligence
involves a wide team of experts including legal, complianceand operational personnel. Formal management approval
for the financial product would be obtained prior to the
distribution to the appropriate customer segments.

We consider it crucial to provide our employees with trainingthat enables them to establish strong relationships withour customers. This includes providing training to relevant
staff involved in the sale of financial products, ensuring
they are well-versed in customer suitability and assessment
requirements, and ensuring they are duly licensed for
conducting financial planning. Fair Dealing is also includedin the mandatory Bankwide Refresher Training Curriculum,
to regularly remind all staff on the importance of delivering
Fair Dealing outcomes to customers. The bank’s successdepends on our customers and enabling our employees
to deliver consistent and quality customer experience is a
critical component of this success.

Digital banking has become an integral part of daily life andwe believe in providing a smooth digital banking experience
to all customers. We evaluate our products and services
with a commitment to financial inclusion, ensuring that every
customer is accorded the fair level of banking experience
they deserve. This includes enhancing our digital banking
user interfaces to improve readability and accessibility for
demographic groups such as the elderly and the visually
impaired. At the same time, we are also a part of theinitiative providing Limited Purpose Bank Accounts (LPBA)
to ex-offenders and persons under investigations or facing

Empowering employees to deliver quality
customer experience

We value our customers’ feedback and strive to improve
our customers’ banking experience by reviewing and reevaluating all highlighted areas of concern. We believethese are valuable indicators of potential issues which
deserve attention. We ensure that customer feedback ishandled effectively and resolved in a fair and consistentmanner. Service standards are put in place for complaints
handling and resolution, including appropriate timeframes
to acknowledge complaints and thorough investigations

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Highlightsof misconduct. As such, we devote appropriate resources
to resolve our customers’ concerns promptly, withoutcompromising the quality of review. At the same time, we
strive to maintain open and transparent communication
channels with our customers in the spirit of fair dealing.
In the unfortunate event of disagreement or complaints,
both our staff and their supervisors are also trained on how
to exercise empathy to better understand the emotions of
our customers. We constantly maintain a close partnershipwith the Financial Industry Dispute Resolution Centre, whichenables us to strive towards reaching mutually beneficial
outcomes during any conflict resolution with our customers.
As the world navigates aftermath of the pandemic, scams
have become a new challenge, especially with the increased
prevalence of digital banking, particularly in Singapore.
When a customer becomes a victim of fraud, our employees
are trained to handle their concerns professionally andsympathetically. In cases where customers faced severe
financial hardship due to the loss of their life savings, wehave extended financial assistance to help them navigate
through this challenging period.

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Banking Trust Index for Singapore (BTIS)
The BTIS is commissioned by the Association of Banks in
Singapore to understand consumers’ level of trust in banks.
The annual survey allows participating banks to monitor
shifts in public sentiment, solicit feedback and identify
areas for improvement. The results released in February
2023 reaffirmed consumers’ trust in Singapore’s banking
industry, with scores increasing for a second straight year
since the survey was first conducted in 2020. 74% of the
respondents had high trust in the banks, attributing theirtrust to the resilience of banks during the pandemic.

For the third consecutive year, DBS has consistently
outperformed the industry, with all trust pillars scoringsignificantly above the industry average. The respondents
recognised DBS in a broad range of areas, including ourfinancial stability and resilience, our efforts in raisingcustomers’ awareness on scams, and our ability to deliver
high quality products. The positive results indicate ourongoing commitment to continuous improvement,
ensuring that we consistently meet the evolving needs ofour customers. Trust is earned through earnest efforts, andwe are committed to continue serving our customers withintegrity, fairness, and transparency.

Consumer Banking Governance Guide for
Sustainability Labelled Products and Services
In 2023, we implemented a new Governance Guide for
Sustainability Products and Services for our Consumer
Banking business. The Guide aims to ensure that a robust
governance framework and internal controls are in place
for products and services, to which a sustainability label
is attached. Products and services with a sustainability
label must fairly represent their sustainability attributes,
in compliance with relevant legal and regulatory
requirements, and following industry best practices.

The Guide is jointly owned by the Chief Sustainability Officeand Consumer Banking. It covers all products and services
within Consumer Banking, in all our locations.

We are conscious that our products can have different
impacts on environmental, social and economic matters,
depending on how they are structured. This new Guide
supports our aim to being transparent around this byestablishing rules on how to choose and use sustainability
labels for CBG products, and how we communicate theseto clients.

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTSThe Guide is part of our broader policy architecture, andprovides guidance on:
1. Our approach to sustainability in Consumer Banking
2. Definitions of sustainability labels
3. The governance related to sustainability products, including:• Eligibility criteria for Consumer Banking sustainability
products and their related labels• The approval, monitoring and escalation processes• Maintenance of records
4. Roles and responsibilities

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Responsible tax management
Supporting a fair and transparent tax system

Our approach
We believe that maintaining a fair and transparent approachto tax management is the foundation of responsible
business practices. This underpins our continual
commitment to pay our fair share of taxes in the locations
where we operate and comply with all relevant tax laws andregulations. We do so by:• C onducting our business in an ethical andprofessional manner	We adopt ethical and professional business practices
and ensure that our tax policy and tax risk management
framework are effectively implemented.
• S trengthening relationships based on the principlesof transparency and fairness	Build and enhance trust with tax authorities based onstrong tax governance and transparency.
• A ctively contributing to industry efforts on tax
rules development
	Participate in industry feedback on key tax regulations
and policies, with the intent of achieving the policy
objectives and intended outcomes.

Key initiatives
Tax governance
The Board of Directors’ responsibility for sustainability
includes responsible tax management, with the Board
Audit Committee reviewing tax matters. The Group Chief
Financial Officer ("CFO"), supported by the Head of Group
Tax, oversees the tax function, which is responsible fortax compliance and the management of tax risks andexposures.

DBS has low tolerance for tax risk and adopts a clearly
defined tax risk management framework that promotes
transparency, fairness and accountability. This is
implemented through our Group Tax Policy, which
is approved by the Group CFO. The Policy is further
supplemented by standards and guides to ensure
continued adherence with the framework.

Risk management framework
Our tax risk management framework is based on thefollowing principles:• W
 e only undertake transactions which are underpinned
by strong commercial motivations that can withstandpublic scrutiny.
• We carefully consider the potential tax sensitivity oftransactions and are guided by a set of establishedescalation and approval procedures.
• We have sufficient skilled employees in the locations where
we have significant operations, and we will seek independent
advice on transactions with significant tax uncertainty.
• We take our tax compliance responsibilities seriously andfulfil all our obligations as a responsible taxpayer.
These principles allow us to align our tax contributions withthe values created in any tax jurisdiction. Our approach
to transactions with clients is guided by our Tax Sensitive
Transactions Standard. We will not knowingly engage intax structures that aim to evade tax. In addition, we haveprocesses in place to ensure that transactions that may leadto tax avoidance are escalated and reviewed by risk andcontrol functions as and when required.

(1) Where tax incentives are offered, we applied for them, fulfilling the conditions set out by the relevant Authorities.
(2)	MNE Groups are in scope if the revenue in their consolidated financial statements exceeds EUR 750m. The test is based on 2 of the 4 fiscal years
immediately preceding the tested fiscal year.

Evolving tax landscape
The global tax landscape continues to transform rapidly,with greater focus on tax transparency and governance.
The OECD/G20 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (“BEPS”)
Project delivered a BEPS package in 2015 that contains 15
actions to tackle tax avoidance, improve the coherence ofinternational tax rules and ensure a more transparent tax
environment. This is followed by the BEPS 2.0 Project toaddress the tax challenges arising from the digitalisation of
the economy. DBS operates in a highly regulated industry.
We maintain economic substance and conduct businesses
in places where we have physical presence(1). As domestic
tax laws and international tax standards continue to evolve,
we will continue to discharge our role as a responsible andcompliant taxpayer through consistent implementation of
the BEPS measures.

BEPS 2.0
Since the implementation of the BEPS Project, the OECD
has continued its work on addressing the tax challenges
arising from digitalisation of the economy with a Two-Pillar
Solution, expected to take effect over 2024 and 2025. As of
December 2023, 140 member jurisdictions have agreed to
the OECD/ G20 Inclusive Framework on the BEPS Two-Pillar
Solution.
Pillar One seeks to reallocate some profits and in turn,taxes, from where the economic activities are conducted towhere the markets are. Under Pillar One, certain industries,
including the regulated financial services sector are scoped

out. Based on the current design and scope as set out in
the Amount A - final Multilateral Convention, and Amount B public consultation documents released by OECD, Pillar One
would likely not have a material impact on DBS Group.
Pillar Two introduces a minimum effective tax rate of 15%
via Global Anti-Base Erosion (“GloBE”) Model Rules forin-scope Multinational Enterprises (“MNE”) Groups(2). In
addition to the GloBE Model Rules and Commentary, theOECD continues to release further Administrative Guidance
periodically. The progress on Pillar Two implementation
varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. We remain an active
participant in the ongoing engagement on Pillar Two
through feedback to the local tax authorities and various
industry forums.
With effect from 2023, DBS is required to make indicative
disclosures of qualitative and quantitative information
about its exposure to Pillar Two income taxes in its audited
financial statements. The key disclosures for 2023 are as
follows and further details are available in the 2023 DBS
Group Annual Report:• D
 BS has no related tax exposure for 2023 as the Pillar
Two legislation was not effective as at the reporting dateof 31 December 2023.
• The Singapore jurisdiction may be liable to pay a topup tax for the difference between the GloBE effective
tax rate and the 15% minimum rate when the Pillar Two
legislation comes into effect. The impact for the otherjurisdictions is expected to be immaterial. DBS is in theprocess of assessing its Pillar Two exposure.

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Our tax contributions
As shown below, our total tax contribution for 2023 was SGD 1.6 billion.

Corporate
Income Tax

SGD 1,376 million (2023)

Irrecoverable
GST/ VAT

SGD 111 million (2023)

Withholding
Tax

SGD 47 million (2023)

SGD 1,154 million (2022)

SGD 73 million (2022)

SGD 34 million (2022)

Governments

Business
Tax

SGD 48 million (2023)

Other
Taxes

SGD 24 million (2023)

Additional notes on our tax contributions• Corporate Income Tax refers to tax expenses accrued on
the profits made by DBS’s Group of companies.
• Irrecoverable GST/ VAT refers to business input taxes
which are not claimable from the relevant tax authorities.
• Withholding Tax refers to the tax withheld and paid tothe relevant tax authorities on certain payments to nonresident institutions or persons.

SGD 30 million (2022)

SGD 22 million (2022)• B usiness Tax refers to taxes levied on the sale of goods
or provision of services to our customers, or for the
conduct of business operations in certain locations.
• Other taxes include but are not limited to Property Tax,
Stamp Duties, Motor Vehicle Tax and Surcharges.

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Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTSPILLAR 3

ImpactBeyondBanking• DBS Foundation• Employee volunteerism• Towards Zero Food Waste

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CONTENTSDBS Foundation

Creating impact, improving lives and enabling change
The DBS Foundation (DBSF) is committed to uplifting lives andlivelihoods by igniting change in businesses and communities.
Our vision is to spark collective action, together with ourpartners and DBS People of Purpose, to help build a betterworld for generations today and tomorrow.
In 2014, the Bank established DBSF with SGD 50 million
focusing on championing social entrepreneurship. In 2022,
the Bank committed an additional SGD 100 million tofurther its efforts in creating positive societal impact. This
went towards growing the work of DBSF, which includes
expanding its scope with the formation of the Community
Impact chapter, and supporting the Bank’s various
philanthropic efforts. The Community Impact chapter was
launched to dial up efforts for underserved communities
by equipping them with digital and financial literacy skills to
face the future with confidence and enabling them to be
more food secure and resilient.

In 2023, we created new platforms and partnerships tobring the wider community together, fostering collective
action for a better world.

a zero food waste cooking battle, and community sing-along
sessions. These programmes have attracted an estimatedaudience engagement of over 300,000(1).

DBS Foundation Outdoor Theatre at
Esplanade, Singapore

Better Park, Taiwan

DBS and Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay announced astrategic partnership, centred around a common vision
to uplift the community and foster a more inclusive andsocially-conscious Singapore. As part of the new partnership,
DBS donated SGD 3.5 million in support of the full range offree programmes at the DBS Foundation Outdoor Theatre
at Esplanade. DBS also launched “DBS Perspectives” at the
DBS Foundation Outdoor Theatre, offering the public a
range of programmes, including sustainable fashion shows,

In 2023, the Bank pledged to give up to SGD 1 billion over the next 10 years to improve lives and livelihoodsof the low-income and underprivileged, and foster a more inclusive society. The bank will deploy up to
SGD 100 million each year in Singapore and its other key markets with effect from 2024. In addition, the bank will commit
over 1.5 million volunteer hours over the next decade to give back to society. This commitment builds on the bank and
DBSF’s community initiatives, addressing the immediate needs, providing vital life skills and strengthening emotional andmental resilience of vulnerable families.

"DBS is this year's World's Best Bank for Corporate Responsibility, making it the first in
Singapore to receive this award since the category's inception in 2014.
Being a responsible corporate citizen is a core tenet of who DBS is, with the group having
embedded corporate responsibility principles in its group-level sustainability strategy.
In 2022, the bank continued to step up on efforts to give back to the community, withinitiatives aimed at equipping the underserved with digital and financial literacy skills,
and ensuring food security and resilience."
Louise Bowman, Editor of Euromoney(1)

Estimated figures as reported by partners for period ending December 2023.

DBS announced a three-year adoption plan for Dagangqian
Park in Taiwan. A strategically located space designed tofoster a sense of purpose and community cohesion throughevents like urban farming towards zero food waste, bazaars
showcasing impactful businesses, competitions and festivals
sparking collective action. Through this partnership, we will
join hands with employee volunteers, social enterprises andpartners in the sustainability ecosystem to actively develop apark that embodies the principles and spirit of sustainability,
while meeting the recreational needs of its citizens.

DBS Better World on Metaverse
DBS Better World is a gamified adventure on the metaverse.
In this experience, players engage in activities to complete
missions and learn more about sustainability issues. The
spotlight is on innovative approaches to reduce food waste
and enhance food resilience inspired by five businesses
for impact supported by DBSF. Among these businesses
are Brewerkz, a craft beer maker based in Singapore. They
upcycle brewers' spent grains, a by-product of beer-making
often discarded in the industry, into food products. Anotherfeatured business for impact (BFI) is Green Price, a retailchain based in Hong Kong. They specialise in selling fooditems that are close to or just past their "best before" date,thereby reducing food waste while enhancing accessibility
for low-income households.

DBS Foundation Outdoor Theatre at Esplanade

Booth at Better Park, Taiwan

Showcase of DBS Better World on Metaverse

Showcase of DBS Better World on Metaverse

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

1. Business for Impact Chapter
The Business for Impact (BFI) chapter aims to catalyse the growth of innovative, purpose-driven businesses, including small
and medium enterprises (SMEs) that tackle pressing social and environmental issues. Our goal is to create long-lasting andsustainable impact, and to inspire all businesses to create positive change.
Our approach:• A dvocate: We advocate for businesses that are not only for profit but also for purpose – to inspire others to join the journey.
• Nurture: We nurture purpose driven businesses and provide them with support needed to scale up their solutions for a better world.
• Integrate: We integrate businesses for impact into our culture and operations, identifying synergies for their growth byleveraging DBS’ resources and expertise.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

DBS Disrupt - The Future of Sustainability”, Singapore organised by DBS SME
Banking, the initiative convened over 350 BFIs, partners, subject matter experts andindustry leaders to support SMEs as they transition and capitalise on opportunities
towards a more sustainable future. DBSF showcased solutions from enterprises suchas UKL Enterprise (TW), SSID (HK) and Ento Industries (SG) to inspire others to join
the journey. Pictured on the right is Sustainable & Secure Information Disposal (SSID) (HK)and UKL Enterprise (TW) showcasing their solutions.
DBS Business Class FoundED, India is an engagement forum to celebrate andencourage innovative entrepreneurship. It aims to educate and better equip
entrepreneurs through a series of networking sessions with startup founders, venture
capitalists, incubators, and other ecosystem players. Trestle Labs, a 2021 grant awardee of
DBSF, shared about their growth journey and impact mission to build an inclusive society
for people who are visually challenged.
Partnership with Singapore Management University for their new “Sustainable
Societies” Second Major

A glimpse into the impact created by DBSF grant awardees in 2023

Ento Industries, Singapore

Ecozen, India

Shenzhen Link Accessibility, China

Sense Innovation, Taiwan

Waste4Change, Indonesia

From successful pilot to scaling impact
Ento Industries is a biotech company that uses black soldier flies to process food waste
and by-products left behind from the food manufacturing process. The DBSF grantfunding supported their successful pilot facility. Moving forward, they plan to set up acommercial-scale facility to scale their impact in reducing food waste.
Uplifting livelihoods and reducing waste
Ecozen has developed Ecofrost, an on-farm solar powered cold storage to reduce energy
usage and minimise perishable food waste throughout the Farm-To-Fork value chain.
The DBSF grant enabled them to expand their operations in India, leading to a 20%
reduction in agri-produce waste for farmers and positively impacting the lives of over
170,000 smallholder farmers(2).
Enabling persons with disability to access digital platforms
Shenzhen Link Accessibility develops apps and digital solutions that enable millions of
disabled individuals to access digital platforms. The DBSF grant enabled them to use
their technology platform to improve accessibility and usability of digital platforms,
empowering more elderly and people with disabilities to access information.
Empowering persons with severe disabilities to communicate... with their eyes
Sense Innovation specialises in using eye-tracking assistive technology to empower
persons with severe disabilities to communicate with ease. The DBSF grant supported
the roll-out of a new SenseAeye platform, the first online platform to integrate
educational materials with eye-tracking technology, enabling more than 1,000
individuals(2) with severe disabilities.
Uplifting livelihoods of the informal sector
Waste4Change provides services in responsible waste management, working towards azero-waste Indonesia. The DBSF grant fund enhanced their quantity and quality of waste
collection and uplifted the livelihoods of those in the informal sector network.

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Estimated figures as reported by the grant awardee

CONTENTS

In 2023, 24 social enterprises and SMEs across Asia were awarded approximately SGD 3.7 million to scale their businessand deepen their social and/ or environmental impact. Since 2014, DBSF has awarded grants of approximately SGD 17
million to about 140 BFIs. Beyond grants, the Asia Impact First Fund, with DBS as the anchor investor, also reached firstclose of USD 20 million and made its first investment in 2023.

DBSF signed an MOU with Singapore Management University (SMU) with the goal of developing next
generation talent for the sustainability sector through the newly launched Second Major in Sustainable
Societies offered by the SMU School of Social Sciences. DBSF aims to provide students with valuable
exposure to real-life problem statements, expert speakers, internships, and learning opportunities.
Live Better Market in Hong Kong, a sustainability-themed weekend bazaar held at a
popular mall, showcased many of our impactful businesses and opened doors for them tobring their products to a wider audience.

Additional Disclosures

NURTURE: Supporting our Business for Impact community in scaling their business and impact through financial
support, opening doors and markets and building capacity.

ADVOCATE: Driving awareness of the double bottom line to inspire more businesses to become Businesses for Impact
In 2023, we reached out to over 380K stakeholders including customers, SMEs, social enterprises, students and partners
through a variety of engagements and partnerships.

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Asia Impact First Fund (AIFF)
AIFF is an impact-first investment fund, managed by Heritas Capital, that provides patient
catalytic capital to innovative and high-growth social enterprises committed to addressing
significant social and environmental challenges in Asia. AIFF had a successful first close withover USD 20 million raised. DBS serves as the anchor investor with a commitment of USD
10 million, alongside liked-minded investors such as Tsao Family Office, IMC Group, andother impact investors. AIFF made its first investment of SGD 2 million in Bettr Group. This
supports Bettr’s business expansion plans and social programmes, with the aim of tripling
the number of beneficiaries annually.

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Impact Makers Meetup, Indonesia
This quarterly event fosters meaningful conversations, and catalyses positive change forsmall businesses in their journey towards sustainability.

Learning and networking as a community
The DBSF community consists of impact makers across the bank’s key markets who have much to share and are passionate
about learning together, with a common goal of helping one another to create greater societal impact.

DBSF Impact Ecosystem, Taiwan
This newly launched programme provides resources and connections to both SEs
and SMEs committed to generating positive impact and undergoing a sustainability
transformation. It offers a variety of discussions on current trends, peer learning sessions,and tools to assist businesses in assessing and enhancing their Environmental, Social, andGovernance (ESG) performance.

Community Connect, Singapore
More than 100 impact makers, including investors, community partners, and BFIs,
gathered in Singapore to celebrate a year of impact, share learnings and work together for
greater impact.

Yangtze River Delta Innovation Symposium, China
More than 150 BFIs and partners gathered to learn and exchange ideas about innovative
paths to sustainable development. The platform was also used to award the 2022 Businessfor Impact Grant Awardees and recognise the new cohort in the community.

Techtonic TZFW Accelerator, India
This accelerator programme, initiated in collaboration with Social Alpha, support startups
in the food and agriculture sector with financial grants, acceleration mentoring, businessadvisory services, and networking support, with the aim of facilitating greater scale andimpact.

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INTEGRATE: Embedding Businesses for Impact into DBS’ culture and operations
In 2023, more than 13,000 DBS employees engaged in different DBSF programmes, with many volunteering their time andskills to cultivate a stronger sense of purpose in being a part of DBS. DBSF also partnered with business units such as SME
Banking and Wealth Banking to drive collective impact.
Employee engagement
We want to help build a purpose-driven culture in DBS by creating opportunities
for employees to join DBSF’s programmes. For example, more than 550 employees
volunteered their skills as grant evaluators and provided consultations to the BFIs.
Read more in our Employee volunteerism chapter on page 87.

“Little Green Ranger’s solutions were very relevant to some of my auto sector clients;
it is very fulfilling to see how business and impact can come together.”
DBS Institutional Banking Group Relationship Manager who volunteered consulting time

Launch of the Business for Impact Banking Package, Singapore
DBS SME Banking is the first and only bank in Singapore to offer the Business for Impact
Banking Package to businesses that are creating impact, including social enterprises,certified B Corporations, and SMEs. This is designed to address the needs of businesses
that drive social and environmental impact by offering preferential banking solutions,
including a Multi-Currency Account, Working Capital loan, Select+ insurance for officecontents and public liability coverage, and access to programmes like Start Digital and Skill
Booster.
Engaging DBS Private Banking clientsDBS Foundation, in collaboration with DBS Private Bank, has actively engaged the next
generation of clients and impact-focused family offices. Through the Future Leaders
Programme, next-generation clients have the opportunity to ideate and pitch their bestsolution to Business for Impact entrepreneurs. Through organised visits to social enterprises,family offices and clients were able to gain a deeper understanding of the impact theseorganisations have on the underprivileged communities. We will continue to strengthen
our engagement with impact-focused clients and foster collaborative impact and action.

(3)

Estimated figures as reported by partners for period ending December 2023.

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2. Community Impact Chapter
Empowering communities to face the future with confidence
Established in 2022, the Community Impact chapter aims to empower communities, especially the underserved, to face thefuture with confidence. We do this by:• Equipping communities with future-ready skills like financial and digital literacy, and mental resilience• Enabling communities to be more food secure and resilient
We join forces with like-minded strategic partners and mobilise DBS People of Purpose as volunteers to collectively uplift
underserved communities.

Uplifting underserved communities through our inaugural programmes
In 2022, a total of SGD 5.6 million in funding was committed to support 10 inaugural programmes across all our coremarkets (Singapore, Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, India, and Indonesia). Within a year of operation, these programmes havepositively impacted the lives of over 4 million beneficiaries and created more than 2 million kg of food impact (food waste
reduced, recycled or excess food redistributed(3). The case studies that follow showcase the impact achieved and thebeneficiaries uplifted.
Future-ready skills
Financial literacy
We partnered Haqdarshak Empowerment
Solutions to provide the marginalised in rural andsemi-rural areas with financial literacy programmes
and access to social welfare schemes and entitlements.
Haqdarshak has since built five training centres,
onboarded over 500 Haqdarshak agents andimpacted more than 84,000 beneficiaries(3).
Haqdarshak has previously received the DBSF
Business for Impact Grant Award in 2018, and the
DBSF Business Transformation and Improvement
Grant in 2020.
Digital literacy
We partnered Infocomm Media Development
Authority (IMDA) to drive digital literacy and inclusion
in Singapore, in particular for seniors, youth, persons
with disabilities, and hawkers, through workshops
and projects funded through the national Digital for
Life Fund. The programme has since benefited over
59,000 people through over 400 sessions(3).

Lakshmi comes from a low-income
family. She has two young children
and her husband is a daily wage
labourer. After the agent training,
Lakshmi conducted door-to-door
sessions on financial literacy in therural village and has since helped
100 other beneficiaries. She now
earns an income as a Haqdarshak
agent and has gained respect fromthe community. As a result, this hasboosted her confidence immensely.

India

Fong Kee was aware of the convenience Singaporeof cashless payments but was extremely
apprehensive of the technology. A
DBS volunteer patiently guided him
to set up his account and taught him
the necessary skills to go digital - henow confidently goes cashless at his
family’s favourite hawker stalls whilestaying vigilant against scams.
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Food security

Food bank
We partnered Jen Ji Shiang Social Service
Institute to help expand its food bank network andredistribution efforts. Jen Ji Shiang Social Service
Institute has since upgraded their storage capacitywith two newly built food bank branches in Hualienand Pingtung which supports 1 million beneficiaries
and creates over 500,000 kg of food impact4.

During a recent typhoon, roadclosures along a major highway
disrupted food supplies tomountainous areas and families
living nearby. The food bank quickly
gathered resources at the newly built
Hualien branch. This allowed thecommunity to travel down from themountains to collect and distribute
food to those in need.

Youth challenge on food waste solutions
tHEMEat Company is one of five
We partnered National Environment Agency
winners of the inaugural Hungry(NEA) to launch the “Hungry for Change Challenge”
for Change Challenge 2022. The
aimed at empowering Singapore’s youth to develop
team, from the National University
innovative solutions for reducing food waste. Fiveof Singapore, developed valorisation
winning teams were chosen from submissions
technology to manufacture VEME™
received from youth across 15 institutes of higher(Vegan Heme), which produces
learning. The winning teams received funding totalling meat-identical flavours in alternative
SGD 125,000 from DBSF, along with mentorshipproteins.
from DBS People of Purpose and consultation with
NEA, to pilot their solutions – which include upcycling
food waste into new food products, and leveraging
technology to prevent food waste.

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Scaling impact with new partners in 2023
In 2023, we committed an additional SGD 5.6 million in funding to support 11 new programmes to further build futureready skills , as well as scale our efforts to help build food security among vulnerable segments.
Below is a summary of the 2023 programmes jointly developed with strategic partners across the region.
Future-ready skills

Financial/ Digital literacy
Junior Achievement Hong Kong
Promote financial awareness and capability
among teenagers to develop good financial
skills and habits.
Singapore

SG Enable
Equip persons with disability (across disability
types) and their caregivers with customised
financial and digital financial literacy curriculum.
Vox Nativa Taiwan
Build resilience among indigenous students
through future-ready skills to enable better
retention in school.

Mental wellness
Shanghai Jushan Charity Store
Equip youth in urban and rural areas with mental
wellness skills through community workshops
focusing on autonomy, belonging and competence.
The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups
Provide low-income families with nutritious
meals and strengthen mental resilience througheducation, assessment and specialised services.
Beatitudes Elderly Service
Provide comprehensive consulting support toseniors and caregivers from low-income families
in rural areas for overall mental wellbeing.
Pley School
Equip students (through train-the-teachers approach)with cyber wellness skills to build mental
resilience.

Limitless
Provide therapy support for underprivileged youth
facing mental health issues, and engage in outreachefforts to equip students with peer support skills.
Food security

Food redistribution
The Conservancy Association
Scale food rescue and redistribution efforts while
educating schools and neighbourhood estates.
Yayasan Daur Pangan Nusantara(FoodCycle Indonesia)
Redistribute surplus food from hotels tounderprivileged communities, and processorganic waste into fertilisers for urban farms.

Solution development
National Environment Agency
Empower youth to develop and pilot solutions toaddress food and food packaging waste challenges.

Collective action to empower communities
to face the future with confidence
Altogether, the 11 new programmes launched in 2023
and 10 programmes launched in 2022 aim to uplift the
lives of over 7 million beneficiaries and create over
5 million kg of food impact to address food insecurityby 2026.
Through these programmes, we look forward to creating
impact, improving lives, and enabling change for theunderserved communities via collective action with ourstrategic partners and DBS People of Purpose.

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Employee volunteerism
Placing purpose at the heart of what we do
2023 at A Glance>200,000 volunteering hours(42% increase)
55% increase in skills-based
volunteering hours> 150,000 beneficiaries

Working with like-minded partners in our key markets,
we’ve developed meaningful employee volunteerism
programmes, to effectively reach the most vulnerable andaddress some of the most pressing needs facing society.
In 2023, we continued to focus on:• S caling up our impact through volunteering
Broadening reach and deepening support across our
focus areas (education, the elderly, and the environment)• Dialling up our skills-based volunteering(1) efforts	Further leveraging our employees’ skills and expertise to
make meaningful contributions• Driving employee engagement within the bank	Engaging and inspiring our employees to make adifference through purposeful volunteering experiences

Key initiatives
At DBS, we recognise the power of collective action. We
encourage our employees to volunteer their time and skills
to make meaningful contributions to the communities welive and work in so as to truly embody what it means to be
People of Purpose.

Our approach
People of Purpose (PoP) is DBS’ employee volunteer
movement that brings our values to life. We aim toinculcate a spirit of volunteerism and all our employees areprovided with two official volunteer-leave days per year.

(1)

Scaling up our impact through volunteering
Broadening our reach through regional programmes
In 2023, we boosted our collective impact through scaling
initiatives to other markets in the region. Our annual
marquee programme, #TeamDBSGives, saw close to
2,000 employees from our core markets coming together
to donate, pack and distribute food and necessities tocommunities in need, benefitting close to 3,000 households.
Deepening our impact in our focus areas
We continued to deepen our efforts in supporting three
key areas – education, the elderly, and the environment(including food waste).

Beyond service-based volunteering, skills-based volunteering leverages on the experience, expertise and networks of its employees.

“The workshop was very meaningful as it helped the young students tolearn the latest Generative AI tools. They were able to express themselvesby creating many pretty, yet insightful artworks.”
Sandie NG, Group Strategic and Planning, DBS Hong Kong

Education
The importance of accessing technology and related devices in education has increased more than before, exacerbatedby the pandemic that made home-based learning the norm. We rolled out programmes across our markets to donate
our employees’ decommissioned computers and laptops to those in need, giving our laptops a second lease of life. In
2023, more than 3,000 computers and laptops were donated, refurbished and redistributed by our employees to theneedy in Singapore, Hong Kong and China.
Next-Gen AI-Imagenation: Empowering youth through learning andaccess to technology
Hong Kong• In collaboration with Share for Good, Adobe and New World Development,
we launched the initiative in 2023 to support underprivileged secondary
school students.
• More than 100 DBS volunteers were involved with the installation of
essential software and guided the students in the learning process.
• 200 students received laptops along with Generative AI and Adobe Fireflysoftware to help enhance their digital skills.
Financial literacy: Empowering the next generation with financial education
Singapore• W e scaled up financial literacy education for youth with various
community partners such as special education schools in Singapore,as well as children and youth supported by the Ministry of Community,
Culture and Youths (MCCY) and TOUCH Community Services.
• More than 1,000 DBS employees volunteered their time to run over 150
financial literacy workshop and learning journeys to our bank branches.

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Elderly

Environment

Inflationary pressures affect significantly the elderly segment, especially those who are from the lower income bracket,
and we recognise that extra care must be taken to ensure they are not left behind.

We have been ramping up volunteering engagements in the environment space, including programmes that support our
Towards Zero Food Waste agenda.

Supermarket shopping with seniors

Miyawaki plantation project: Afforestation at Hyderabad University
CampusSingapore

India (Hyderabad)• T
 o reach more seniors and enable them to buy necessities, we scaled
up our curated supermarket shopping sessions in collaboration with the
Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY).
• As part of the supermarket shopping sessions, we also incorporated
the sharing of anti-scam tips from our consumer banking team withthe seniors, to better equip them with foundational skills to protect
themselves from scams which are becoming more prevalent and complex.
• More than 3,000 seniors were supported through over 100 sessions.

• O ver 530 DBS volunteers were engaged forthe implementation of the Miyawaki methodof afforestation, as part of the Miyawaki Plantation Project.
• More than 6,000 native tree saplings across more than 40 species
were planted.
#MakanTanpaSisa: A Movement to Reduce Food Waste
Indonesia

Befriending vulnerable seniors• In partnership with Food Cycle, Surplus Foundation and Wonder
Food Indonesia, our volunteers conducted food drives for the elderly
and children to promote #MakanTanpaSisa while sharing about theimportance of reducing our food waste.
• More than 500 volunteers participated in the food drives which reachedover 700 beneficiaries.

Taiwan• W
 e partnered with HuaShan Social Welfare Foundation to address thefood scarcity challenge among the elderly in Taipei.
• Our volunteers made home visits, meal deliveries and befriended
vulnerable seniors.
• During special festivals and holidays, our volunteers also rallied to craft
thoughtful gifts,
such as hats and gloves for the Lunar New Year,and backpacks during Mid-Autumn Festival.
• More than 360 DBS volunteers supported over 1,000 seniors who arehelped by HuaShan Social Welfare Foundation in 2023.
• Going forward, we plan to expand our support and reach beyond Taipei.

• 

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Dialling up our skills-based volunteering efforts
We leveraged our employees’ skills to contribute meaningfully to the community, which gained momentum in 2023
across our core markets. Skills-based volunteering programmes included financial and digital literacy programmes for theunderserved, mentoring programmes with youth and adults, as well as programmes curated by DBS Foundation (DBSF) to
support businesses for impact.
Leveraging our employees’ skills in financial and digital literacy
Financial and digital literacy education for youth, the elderly, and marginalised segments in the community, such as lowerincome families, remains a key focus area of our volunteering efforts. The DBSF's Community Impact Chapter seeks toequip underserved segments of the community with the necessary knowledge and future-ready skills to remain resilientin an ever-changing world.

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Journeying with the next generation through mentoring
Mentoring programmes in DBS tap on the life experiences and knowledge of our DBS employees and enable them toshare these with the next generation. Our volunteers in turn gain and learn from their mentees, creating a virtuous cycleof learning and support.
Mentorship for the next generation
Singapore

Read more about this initiative in Technology resilience (incl. cyber security) chapter.

• W
 e recognise the wealth of experiences among our employees and how
this can empower the next generation. In partnership with higher learning
institutions such as Institute of Technical Education (ITE), Singapore
Polytechnic as well as the Singapore Management University, our DBS
volunteers dedicated their time to be mentors to the next generation.
• Before the commencement of the mentorship programme, mentors weretrained by our partners, to be equipped for the mentorship journey.
• More than 200 employees in Singapore dedicated more than 1,700 hours
to be mentors for the next generation.

Kedai Belajar: Financial & Digital Literacy for SME Practitioners“Letters of Confidence for the Future”

Indonesia

China• In collaboration with Komerce, guidance on topics such as Financial
Management, Sustainability Financing, and Cyber security were madeavailable to SMEs practitioners to improve the Indonesian community’s
Financial & Digital Literacy and support the upskilling of businesses.
• In 2023, Kedai Belajar DBS was held in two Indonesian cities, Makassar inSouth Sulawesi and Balikpapan in East Borneo.
• The programmes were supported by 8 DBS Indonesia speakers, who
volunteered their time, skills, and knowledge to share their insights andexperience with more than 200 SME Practitioners.

• In partnership with Tomoroe Education, a 2018 DBS Foundation Grantee in China, more than 85 DBS employees
participated in the #AskByChildren initiative, where DBS volunteers took time to answer challenging questions frommiddle school students aged 11 to 15 years old from rural schools who asked their questions via handwritten letters.
• More than 190 letters from the students were answered, which helped to address the students’ anxieties about theirstudies and the future.

Read more in DBS Foundation chapter.

To drive awareness of CyberWellness in the community, our DBS #CyberWellness programme trains employees ofcharities and social enterprises to effectively respond to cyber threats. The program leverages our internal training
content and the expertise of our DBS volunteers.

Reaching the underserved communities with financial literacy
India (Mumbai)• W orking with Haqdarshak, financial literacy workshops were conducted
for students pursuing vocational courses and skills development
programmes, which included women and differently abled individuals
from rural underserved communities.
• More than 24 financial literacy workshops were conducted both virtuallyand in-person to reach more than 1,200 participants.

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Leveraging employees’ skills to support Businesses for Impact
Our employees also contributed their skills and expertise to helping social enterprises and other businesses supported
by DBS Foundation’s ‘Business for Impact’ chapter.
Read more in DBS Foundation on chapter.

DBS Foundation Business for Impact Grant Award
Regional• A
 s part of the evaluation process for the DBS Foundation Business for
Impact Grant Award, employees volunteered as evaluators or advisors
for the business’ pitching process.
• Over 500 employees from across the bank in all our core markets
volunteered over 4,000 hours.
Done In A Day
Singapore• D one in a Day is a full-day “hackathon” where DBS volunteers utilised
their knowledge and expertise to help solve existing business challenges
faced by businesses for impact supported by the DBS Foundation.
• Employee volunteers teamed up to help solve existing challenges facedby 13 businesses for impact in two runs of the programme this year.

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Driving employee engagement
With purpose at the heart of what we do, our employees are
key to our efforts to create impact beyond banking.
We continue to focus on fostering a culture of giving back,by engaging and inspiring our employees in meaningful
ways, and by making their volunteering journey seamlessand fruitful.

Inaugural PoP Awards
In 2023, we have also launched the inaugural PoP Awards
in all our core markets to celebrate and recognise DBS
employees and their teams who have gone above andbeyond to make a difference and create impact in thecommunity. All of them have shown passion, dedicationand outstanding commitment to volunteering. A total of
63 employees were recognised in all our core markets inrecognition of their contribution to the community.

“Through Done in A Day, I realised that businesses are capable of making a
positive change in the community too. By helping them to solve businessproblems, I’m indirectly creating a bigger impact with them.”
Ryan Goh, Group Strategic Marketing and Communications“My motivation to volunteer came from my positive experience I had last year
as part of DBS People of Purpose when I first joined the bank. Volunteering is an
opportunity for new joiners like me to understand the bank more, its culture andtraditions. When I volunteer, I realise that the skills I have, which I thought was very
basic, comes in very handy to bless and guide the less privileged amongst us.”
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Enhancing the volunteer journey
We are always looking for ways to enhance the volunteering journey for our employees, such that it is simple, seamlessand accessible for all.
We continued to make enhancements to PoP Connect, our central digital volunteering platform where volunteering
programmes are listed for employees to search and sign up for the ones that resonate most with them. This year,
more than 1,000 programmes were listed on PoP Connect, and it saw a 46% increase in the number of users.

Inspiring through storytelling
To showcase the collective impact created by our employee volunteers, we took on a more focused storytelling approach,leveraging different channels to share stories of impact. One of these is our new content series “After Hours” whichshowcases community stories on our social media platforms. Within the bank, in-depth stories of our volunteers werefeatured on Life@DBS which saw a 39% increase in views in 2023. These stories showcase the difference made in the
lives of the community, and allow us to recognise and celebrate our employees’ contributions, thus inspiring others
to join the journey.
As a purpose-driven bank, we seek to encourage and cultivate a workforce that thinks and operates with purpose amidst
an ever-changing world.
Through the commitment and dedication of our employees, we collectively contributed more than 200,000 volunteering
hours and reached over 150,000 beneficiaries across our core markets in 2023. This marked our highest ever number ofvolunteering hours, which was a 42% increase from 2022.

Snapshots from After Hours

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Towards Zero Food Waste
Globally, 13% of food is lost between harvest and retail, withan estimated 17% wasted in households, food service, andretail combined, as reported by the UN Food and Agriculture
Organisation. Food waste and food loss contribute almost
10% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, according
to the United Nation Environment Programme Food Waste
Index Report 2021. If food waste were a country, it would be
the third-largest GHG emitter in the world, according to the
UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (UNFAO).

us to achieve more than 22,000 tonnes of food impact
in 2023 alone, encompassing reductions in food waste,
recycling and redistribution. In 2023, we strengthened ourpartnership with S4S Technologies, resulting in the sharp
increase in our food impact numbers.

As a bank that is dedicated to building a sustainable andclimate-resilient future, DBS launched the Towards Zero
Food Waste (TZFW) movement in 2020. Over the past three
years, this regional initiative has significantly progressed,
highlighting the bank’s commitment to sparking collective
action for a sustainable future. Our concerted efforts led

i. A dvocate - Building awareness of the issue andinspiring action to reduce food loss and waste

Our TZFW initiative seeks to create sustainable impact by
spurring change in mindsets and behaviours through athree-pronged approach:ii. Activate - Rallying employees to take action and work
towards reducing food waste in our own operations
iii. Ally - Partnering with like-minded organisations to scale
impact and reduce food waste

TaiwanIn Taiwan, we launched our “Sustainability of the Day” campaign together with Social
Enterprise Insights at DBS Better Park. The campaign aims to raise awareness andencourage a sustainable lifestyle through sharing tips on using recyclable materials andreducing food waste while encouraging participants to build an inclusive community.
Participants engaged in personalised challenges where they commit to creating zerofood waste for a week with the results reported back to us. Within a month of launch,
the campaign has attracted over 1,300 participants and have generated approximately
3 tonnes of food impact.
Activate – Engaging our employees
As a purpose-driven bank, we believe it is important to bring our employees on board this meaningful journey Towards
Zero Food Waste. Across our offices, we are rallying our colleagues to donate surplus food and participate in volunteer
activities, redistributing excess food to vulnerable communities throughout the year.
Singapore

Advocate – Changing mindsets and behaviour
Our TZFW initiative adopts a holistic approach, addressing both the symptoms and root causes of food waste throughraising awareness and understanding. To accomplish this goal and promote more sustainable consumption habits, weform partnerships and develop engaging content tailored to diverse target audiences.
China
In China, we partnered Xishi Magic Bag, a 2022 DBS Foundation Grant Programme
finalist, and Xiaohongshu, China’s lifestyle-focused social media platform, on a campaign
promoting sustainable consumption among the youth. The campaign engaged 30 Key
Opinion Leaders (KOLs) and incentivised purchase of food that would have otherwise
been wasted thus creating over 300 tonnes of food impact.
Indonesia
To commemorate World Food Day on October 16th, DBS Indonesia launched the ‘Live
More, Waste Water & Food Less’ campaign, which supports the Government’s National
Food Agency agenda. The campaign educates people on reducing food waste and saving
water through three main activities supported by our partners: donating and distributing
food, offering a digital platform for food rescue, and promoting ‘Stop Boros Pangan’ and‘Belanja Bijak’ campaigns.

In alignment with International World Food Day, DBS Singapore employees were invited toparticipate in the “Recycle More, Waste Less” initiative. This included a three-day challenge
to promote proper waste sorting. More than 500 employees were engaged in online
quizzes designed to raise awareness about reducing food waste and ensuring proper
waste sorting.
Hong Kong
In Hong Kong, our “Be A Real Foodie” programme aimed at fostering employee engagement
towards reducing food waste and encouraging them to reduce food waste at its source.
As part of this campaign, food waste from designated recycling bins was transformed into
compost which was used to grow organic vegetables on the rooftop farm of DBSHK office.
The harvested produce is then donated to local food banks. This initiative aims to drive acultural shift towards more sustainable practices within the organisation.

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Ally – Partnering for impact
With a strong belief in collective action to scale our impact, we launched several impactful and innovative programmes inpartnership with close to 40 like-minded organisations from the private, public and people sectors.
China
In China, we created 220 tonnes of food impact through our partnership with HotMaxx,
a discount grocery retail chain selling short-dated and excess products. In this “Romance
More, Waste Less” campaign, we introduced a new approach by hosting a live sale ofdiscounted coupons on Douyin (China’s version of TikTok), which coincided with thecelebration of Valentine’s Day. Beyond addressing short-dated food concerns, thiscampaign enhanced engagement and built affinity with the next generation.

Hong Kong
In Hong Kong, our partnership with Foodpanda incentivises DBS cardholders to embracesustainable dining. Through our partnership, the number of restaurant outlets which
offer a “less rice” and “less noodle” option doubled, increasing from 330 to 640. As an added
incentive, DBS cardholders who choose “less rice” or “less noodles” for takeaway orders
will be given a HKD 20 voucher. Additionally, we doubled donations to Foodlink throughthe app, which significantly magnifies the impact on food waste.

DBS Foundation
In 2023, DBS Foundation, through its Business for Impact chapter and Community Impact chapter, enhanced andintensified our efforts towards reducing food waste. The Business for Impact Chapter continued to support social
enterprises and businesses focused on reducing food waste through grants and capacity-building. Whereas the Community
Impact chapter focuses on reducing food waste and enhancing food security for underprivileged communities across theregion. Our vision is to spark collective action with our partners and DBS People of Purpose to build a better world for
current and future generations.

Leveraging Technology to Reduce Food LossDBS India continues the transformative collaborationand partnership with S4S Technologies, a social
enterprise supported by the DBS Foundation. Thisinitiative harnesses cutting-edge freeze-drying
technology from S4S Technologies to dehydrate, package
and sell dried surplus fruit and vegetables at farm level,saving over 20,000 tonnes of crops from being wasted in
2023 and directly benefitting low wage farmers.

In addition, the programme empowers women in ruralvillages, creating a powerful multiplier effect that extends
far beyond agriculture. This programme not only tackles
the pressing issue of food loss and waste, but also
catalyses positive social change where women in thesecommunities are equipped with transferable skills whichhelps them unlock economic opportunities. Through thisprogramme, almost 900 dehydration units were installed
in 2023, thus empowering women microentrepreneurs
to create long-term income for their families.

Read more about DBS Foundation on page 82.

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Additional Disclosures
Summary of performance and targets
SectionDescription

TargetTarget date

2023 progress

Pillar 1
Responsible
financing

SustainablelivingFinancialinclusion

Description

TargetTarget date

2023 progress

Building an inclusive culture

Deepen efforts to drive diversity,
equity and inclusion

Ongoing

On track

Achieve 35% female representationin India2026

On track
Currently at 30%

Achieve 30% female Board
representation

2030

Currently at 20%

Pillar 2
To achieve a net-zero future while
Interim 2030 targets and net zerorecognising our social responsibility 2050 targets for our nine priority
to foster a just and inclusive
sectorstransition

2030 and
2050(1)

All on track, except for:
Steel (almost on track)
Shipping (not on track)

Setting customers on the path ofsustainable living

Develop tailored sustainable
solutions for all retail customers formore sustainable lifestyles

Long term

On track

Nurturing healthy savings andinvestment habits

Democratise wealth and expand
Long term
financial literacy resources and tools
to consumers

On track

Empowering sustainable and ESG
investing

Grow sustainable investment(2) AUM 2023
to >50% by 2024

Achieved
2023: 55.6%

Creating an enabling environment
for the underbanked

Meet the financial inclusion
objectives under the PSL guidelinesof the RBIAnnualOn track:
2023: SGD 3 billion

Addressing the financing gap ofsmall local businesses

Help customers start theirinvestment journey

Ongoing

On track

Driving diversity,
equity andinclusion

Managing ourenvironmental
footprint

Generating renewable energy
to achieve the sustainable
management and efficient use ofnatural resources

100% renewable energy in ouroperations for Singapore under our
RE100 commitment2030

On track

Sustainableprocurement

Screening of new suppliers inalignment with DBS’ Sustainable
Sourcing Principles (SSP)

Commit 100% of new suppliers to
DBS’ SSP standards

AnnualAlmost on track*(2023: >99%)

Keeping data safe and secure

Achieve no material instances ofdata breaches during the year

Ongoing

On track

Data governance

Pillar 2
Enhancing
employeeengagement
and culture

Our employees are our greatest
asset to drive success

Developing
our people

Our talent is our greatest asset todrive success

(1)
(2)

Section*For suppliers that do not commit
to our SSP, we conduct additional
due diligence on their social andenvironmental policies to ensure weare comfortable continuing a business
relationship with them.

Position ourselves as an employerof choice

Ongoing

On track

Driving bank-wide awareness ondata management

Drive data management-related
training and awarenessOngoing

On track

Improve employee journeys andshape the future of work

Ongoing

On track

Maturing our approach to
managing AI and model risk

Ongoing

On track

Drive the people, leadership andculture agenda

Ongoing

On track

Ensure 100% compliance tobaseline governance requirements
for all deployed AI solutions

Complete the upskill and reskill of
8,000 employees

2024

On track
Over 97% of identified
employees have commenced
upskilling/ reskilling

Please note that for the Power sector, our net zero target is by 2040
Sustainable investments are defined as investment products (bonds, equity and funds) that have MSCI ESG ratings of BBB and above.

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Highlights

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

SectionDescription

TargetTarget date

2023 progress

Fair dealing

A strong risk culture and good
conduct is necessary to deliver fairdealing outcomes for our clients

Achieve no material instances of
non-compliance concerning fairdealing during the year*

Ongoing

On track

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS*Fair dealing matters would include product due
diligence and marketing communications

Preventing
financial crime

Protecting our customers andbusinesses from financial crime

Achieve no material instancesof non-compliance concerning
financial crime prevention during
the year.

Ongoing

On track

Technology
resilience (incl.
cyber security)

Fortifying resilience and security

Achieve a zero-tolerance mindset
for operational risk, including cybersecurity

Ongoing

On track

DBS Foundation

Empowering businesses andcommunities for impact

Deepening our social andenvironmental impact through theprogrammes of DBS Foundation(through the Business for Impact& Community Impact chapters)

Ongoing

On track

Employeevolunteerism

Placing purpose at the heart ofwhat we doContribute 150,000 volunteer hours 2023
across our six markets to promote a
culture of employee volunteerism

Achieved
2023: >200,000 hours

DBS commits to over 1.5 million
employee volunteering hours overthe next decade

On track

Pillar 3

2034

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Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

10 Principles of UN Global Compact
Principles

Report section

Page no.

13
16
52
64

Human Rights
Principle 1

Businesses should support and respect the protection ofinternationally proclaimed human rights

Principle 2Make sure that they are not complicit in human rights abuses• Human rights• Responsible financing• Driving diversity, equity and inclusion• Sustainable procurement

Principle 3

Businesses should uphold the freedom of association and theeffective recognition of the right to collective bargaining

 ee 2-30, Collective bargaining agreements, under theS
GRI Content Index

98

Principle 4

Elimination of all forms of forced and compulsory labour

Principle 5

Effective abolition of child labour• Responsible financing• Sustainable procurement

1664

Principle 6

Elimination of discrimination in respect of employment andoccupation• Driving diversity, equity and inclusion• Sustainable procurement

5264• CEO Message• Responsible financing• Managing our environmental footprint• Sustainable procurement• Commitments and memberships

4
16
59
64
107

Preventing financial crime74

LabourEnvironment
Principle 7

Businesses should support a precautionary approach toenvironmental challenges

Principle 8

Undertake initiatives to promote greater environmental
responsibility

Principle 9

Encourage the development and diffusion of environmentallyfriendly technologies

Anti-corruption
Principle 10

Businesses should work against corruption in all its forms, including
extortion and bribery

		

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Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTSGRI Content index

The content of this report follows the GRI standards reporting principles.

Accuracy

CompletenessThe organisation shall report information that is correctand sufficiently detailed to allow an assessment of theorganisation’s impacts

The organisation shall provide sufficient information to
enable an assessment of the organisation’s impacts during
the reporting period.

Balance

Sustainability context

The organisation shall report information in an unbiased
way and provide a fair representation of the organisation’s
negative and positive impacts

The organisation shall report information about its impacts
in the wider context of sustainable development.

Timeliness

Clarity
The organisation shall present information in a way that isaccessible and understandable

The organisation shall report information on a regularschedule and make it available in time for information
users to make decisions.

Disclosure requirements

Reference & response

External assurance

Human rights
2-1

Organisational details• Legal name• Ownership and legal form
• Location of headquarter• Countries of operation• DBS Group Holdings Ltd• Public limited company listed on the
Singapore Exchange• Back cover, page 111• Who we are, Annual Report, page 3

2-2

Entities included in the organisation’ssustainability reporting ubsidiaries and consolidated structured entities, Annual
S
Report, page 147

2-3

Reporting period, frequency andcontact point

Sustainability and financial reporting period: 1 Jan to 31 Dec
2023
Publication date: 6 March 2024
Contact point: sustainability@dbs.com

Comparability

Verifiability

2-4

Restatements of information---

The organisation shall select, compile, and report
information consistently to enable an analysis of changes
in the organisation’s impacts over time and an analysis ofthese impacts relative to those of other organisations

The organisation shall gather, record, compile, and analyse
information in such a way that the information can be
examined to establish its quality.

2-5

External assurance

Assurance statement, page 109

Statement of use

DBS has reported in accordance with the GRI standards for the period 1 Jan to 31 Dec 2023

GRI 1 used

GRI 1: Foundation 2021

Applicable GRI sector standard(s)Not applicable

Activities and workers
2-6

Activities, value chain and otherbusiness relationships• Who we are, Annual Report, page 3• International presence, Annual Report, page 197• Financial statements, Annual Report, page 109• There were no significant changes to our organisational
profile and supply chain during the reporting period

2-7

Employees

Driving diversity, equity and inclusion, page 52

2-8

Workers who are not employees

In 2023, the total number of workers by headcount who are
not employees was 6,607, and they are made up of 3,415
professional contractors (i.e., provision of resource where DBS
decides on the rate of a contractor and pays the additional
agreed overhead cost to the vendor) and 2,652 agency
contractors (i.e., provision of resource where DBS pays aflat/ fixed rate to vendors for providing a contractor with a
specialised skill set).

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Disclosure requirements

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Reference & response

Governance
2-9

Governance structure and composition

2-10

Nomination and selection of thehighest governance body

2-11
2-12

2-13

Chair of the highest governance bodyRole of the highest governance bodyin overseeing the management of
impacts
Delegation of responsibility for
managing impacts

Corporate governance, Annual Report, page 42
Governance of sustainability, page 8
Corporate governance, Annual Report,
page 42

Corporate governance, Annual Report, page 42
Governance of sustainability, page 8

Role of the highest governance body insustainability reporting

2-15

Conflicts of interest

Corporate governance, Annual Report, page 42

2-16

Communication of critical concerns

Corporate governance, Annual Report, page 42

2-17

Collective knowledge of the highest
governance body
Evaluation of the performance of thehighest governance body

2-19

Remuneration policies

2-20

Process to determine remuneration

2-21

Annual total compensation ratio

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Disclosure requirements

Additional Disclosures

Reference & response

CONTENTS

External assurance

Strategy, policies and practices

2-14

2-18

External assurance

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Corporate governance, Annual Report, page 42
Governance of sustainability, page 8

Remuneration report, Annual Report,
page 65
We do not disclose against this metric due to confidentiality
constraints.

Strategy, policies and practices
2-22Statement on sustainable development
strategy• CEO message, page 4• Governance of sustainability, page 8• Board statement on sustainability, page 8• Human rights, page 13

2-23

Policy commitments

2-24

Embedding policy commitments

Corporate governance, Annual Report, page 42
Human rights, page 13
Governance of sustainability, page 8
Responsible financing, page 16
Sustainable procurement, page 64
Driving diversity, equity and inclusion, page 52
Preventing financial crime, page 74

2-25

Processes to remediate negative
impacts

Human rights, page 13
Responsible financing, page 16
Sustainable procurement, page 64
Preventing financial crime, page 74

2-26

Mechanisms for seeking advice andraising concerns

Stakeholder engagement, page 10
Preventing financial crime, page 74

2-27

Compliance with laws and regulations

There were no material instances of non-compliance withlaws and regulators in this context during the year.

2-28

Membership associations

Commitments and memberships, page 107

Stakeholder engagement
2-29

Approach to stakeholder engagement

Stakeholder engagement, page 10

2-30

Collective bargaining agreements

Our house union in Singapore, the DBS Staff Union, is anaffiliate of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).
As of 31 December 2023, 595 of our employees are
eligible for collective bargaining under the Memorandumof Understanding between DBS and DBS Staff Union.
In addition, there were no employees who are officers
and below in Agreement between DBS Vickers and The
Singapore Manual and Mercantile Workers’ Union. In
addition, there were no employees who are officers andbelow in the Collective Agreement between DBS Vickers
and The Singapore Manual and Mercantile Workers' Union.
The working conditions and terms of employment based on
the collective bargaining agreements are applicable for all
employees of the organisation.
The DBS Bank India Employee's Union is a registered Trade
Union under The Trade Unions Act, 1926. It is affiliated to
NCBE (National Confederation of Bank Employees). As of 31
December 2023 a total of 1,004 employees are membersof this Union. The working conditions and terms of
employment are generally common for staff covered by thecollective bargaining agreement between DBS Bank India
Ltd and the DBS Bank India Employee's Union and otherpermanent staff.
Overall, there are 1,599 (4%) employees covered underunions.

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Highlights

Disclosure requirements

Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Reference & response

Disclosures on material topics

3-2
3-3

Process to determine material topics

List of material topics
Management of material topics

GRI
Standard

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Disclosure requirements

Material ESG factors, Annual Report, page 77
Material ESG factors, page 12
Human rights, page 13
Material ESG factors, Annual Report, page 77
Material ESG factors, page 12

3-3Management of material topics

205-1

Operations assessed for risks related
to corruption

205-2

Communication and training
about anti-corruption policies andprocedures

205-3

Confirmed incidents of corruption andactions taken

Economic performanceTax

GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 201 Economic performance 2016

GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 207 Tax 2019

3-3

Management of material topics

3-3Management of material topics

201-1

Direct economic value generated anddistributed

207-1

Approach to tax

207-2

Tax governance, control and risk
management

207-3

Stakeholder engagement andmanagementof concerns related to tax

207-4

Country-to-country reporting

Financial implications and other risks
and opportunities due to climatechangeReference & response

CONTENTS

External assurance

GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 205 Anti-Corruption 2016

Please refer to respective chapters of material topics
Human rights, page 13

Material topics

201-2

Additional Disclosures

Anti-Corruption

GRI 3: Material topics 2021
3-1

External assurance

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

CFO statement, Annual Report, page 20
How we create value – our business model,
Annual Report, page 70
How we allocate financial value created, Annual Report, page
76. In 2023, SGD 100 million was set aside from our profits
as part of our commitment of SGD 1 billion over the nextten years to community contributions was expensed off in
the Consolidated income statement and a provision wasrecognised in the Balance sheet as at 31 December 2023.
Refer to pages 120 and 122 in the Annual Report for more
information. The provision will be utilised progressively when
DBS contributes to the community in the coming years.
Note 46.2, Geographical segment reporting (Profit beforetax), Annual Report, page 179
Responsible Financing, page 16
Responsible tax management, page 79

Indirect economic impact

Preventing financial crime, page 74
Sustainable procurement, page 64

Responsible tax management, page 79

Refer to Financial statement Note 45.2 for the geographicalsegment reporting of our tax position as reported inaccordance with Singapore Financial Reporting Standards(International). Additional narrative on our tax contributions(the taxes we pay and collect as we do business) are also
provided in our tax chapter, Responsible tax management,on page 79

GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 203 Indirect economic impact 2016
3-3

Management of material topics

203-2

Significant indirect economic impact

Sustainable living, page 37
Financial inclusion, page 40
DBS Foundation, page 82

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GRI
Standard

Highlights

Disclosure requirements

Approach

Reference & response

EnergyPillar 1 Responsible Banking

External assurance

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

GRI
Standard

306-2

GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 302 Energy 2016
3-3

Management of material topics

302-1

Energy consumption within theorganisation

302-3

Energy intensity

302-4

Reduction of energy consumption

306-3

Managing our environmental footprint, page 59

GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 303 Water and Effluents 2018
Management of material topics

303-1

Interactions with water as sharedresource

303-3

Water withdrawal

Disclosure requirements

Management of significant wasterelated impacts

Additional Disclosures

Reference & response

Waste generated

GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 308 Supplier Environmental Assessment 2016
3-3

Management of material topics

308-1

New suppliers that were screenedusing environmental criteria

308-2

Negative environmental impacts in the
supply chain and actions taken

Sustainable procurement, page 64

Employment
Managing our environmental footprint, page 59

GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 401 Employment 2016
Management of material topics

Enhancing employee engagement and culture, page 46

401-1

New employee hires and employee
turnoverDriving diversity, equity and inclusion, page 52

GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 305 Emissions 2016

401-3

Parental leave

Enhancing employee engagement and culture, page 46

3-3Management of material topics

Training and education

305-1

Direct (Scope 1) GHG emissions

GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 404 Training and Education 2016

305-2

Energy indirect (Scope 2) GHG
emissions

3-3Management of material topics

404-1

Average hours of training per year per
employee

404-2

Programs for upgrading employee skills
and transition assistance programs

404-3

Percentage of employees receiving
regular performance and careerdevelopment reviews

Emissions305-4

Managing our environmental footprint, page 59

Other indirect (Scope 3) GHG
emissions
GHG emissions intensity

Waste
GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 306 Waste 2020
3-3

Management of material topics

306-1

Waste generation and significant
waste-related impacts

External assuranceManaging our environmental footprint, page 59

3-3

305-3

CONTENTS

Supplier environmental assessment

Water and effluents

3-3

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Developing our people, page 49
Driving diversity, equity and inclusion, page 52

Managing our environmental footprint, page 59

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GRI
Standard

Highlights

Disclosure requirements

Approacheference & response

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

External assurance

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

GRI
Standard

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Disclosure requirements

Additional Disclosures

Reference & response

Diversity & equal opportunity

Marketing & labelling

GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 405 Diversity & equal opportunity 2016

GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 417 Marketing & labelling 2016

3-3

Management of material topics

3-3Management of material topics

405-1

Diversity of governance bodies andemployees

417-1

Requirements for product and service
information and labelling

405-2

Ratio of basic salary and remunerationof women to men

417-2

Incidents of non-complianceconcerning product and service
information and labelling

417-3

Incidents of non-complianceconcerning marketing communications

Driving diversity, equity and inclusion, page 52
Corporate governance, Annual Report, page 42
Board of directors, Annual Report, pages 188

Local communities
GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 413 Local communities 2016
3-3

Management of material topics

413-1

Operations with local community
engagement, impact assessments, anddevelopment programs

DBS Foundation, page 82
Employee volunteerism, page 87

414-1

New suppliers that were screenedusing social criteria

414-2

3-3

Management of material topics

418-1

Substantiated complaints concerning
breaches of customer privacy andlosses of customer data

Sustainable procurement, page 64

Public policy
GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 415 Public policy 2016
Management of material topics

415-1

Political contributions

Technology resilience (incl. cyber security), page 67
Data governance, page 70

Socioeconomic compliance

Negative social impacts in the supply
chain and actions taken

3-3

Fair dealing, page 77

GRI 3: Material opics 2021/ GRI 418 Customer privacy 2016

GRI 3: Material topics 2021/ GRI 414 Supplier social assessment 2016
Management of material topics

External assurance

Customer privacy

Supplier social assessment

3-3

CONTENTS

Preventing financial crime, page 74

GRI 103: Management approach 2016/ GRI 419: Socioeconomic compliance 2016
103-1

Explanation of material topic and its
boundary

103-2

The management approach and its
components

103-3

Evaluation of the management
approach419-1

Non-compliance with laws andregulations in the social and economic
area

Preventing financial crime, page 74
Responsible tax management, page 79

There were no material instances of non-compliance withlaws and regulators in this context during the year.

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Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTSSASB standards
In line with our assessment of material ESG factors, ourdisclosures are based on the Sustainability AccountingStandards Board (SASB) standards that are most alignedwith our mix of businesses: Commercial Banks (FN-CB),
Consumer Finance (FN-CF), and Mortgage Finance (FN-MF).
It is our commitment to develop disclosures that are
relevant, useful, and meaningful to our investors over time.
We do not report in conformance with all disclosures in

the aforementioned standards, as some are deemed to beirrelevant or sensitive to be disclosed. We will continue toreview developments in the SASB standards and will evolve
our reporting against them. Unless otherwise noted, allinformation included in the SASB disclosure is presented for
DBS Group and our subsidiaries.

SASB code

FN-CB410a.1

FN-CB410a.2

FN-CB510a.1
SASB code

Topic

Accounting metrics

Response & references

SourceAcross multiple standards
FN-CB230a.2
FN-CF230a.3

Data security

Description of approach to identifying andaddressing security risks

Refer to “Our approach” underpillar 2, Technology resilienceand our Data governancechapters

Sustainability
Report, pages
67 to 73

FN-CB240a.3
FN-CB240a.4

Number and amount of loans outstanding
qualified to programs designed topromote small business and community
development
Financial inclusion &capacity building

Incorporation ofEnvironmental,
Social, andGovernance factors
in credit analysis

Business ethics

FN-CB550a.1
FN-CB550a.2

Refer to POSB in the Annual
ReportAnnual Report,
page 40

Refer to “Key Initiatives” underpillar 1, Financial inclusion

Sustainability
Report, page 40

Number of no-cost retail checking accounts
provided to previously unbanked orunderbanked customers

Refer to POSB in the Annual
ReportAnnual Report,
page 40

Number of participants in financial literacy
initiatives for unbanked, underbanked, or
underserved customers

Refer to “Key Initiatives” underpillar 1, Financial inclusion

Sustainability
Report, page 40

FN-CB000.B

Accounting metrics

Response & references

SourceCommercial and industrial credit exposure,by industry

Refer to financial statement
Note 42.4 for Credit risk bygeography and industry –analysed by industry

Annual Report,
page 173

Description of approach to incorporationof environmental, social, and governance(ESG) factors in credit analysis

Refer to "Ensuring robust
risk management processes"
under pillar 1, Responsible
financing

Sustainability
Report, page 21

Description of whistle-blower policies andprocedures

Refer to pillar 2, Preventing
financial crime

Sustainability
Report, page 74

Description of approach to incorporationof results of mandatory and voluntarystress tests into capital adequacy planning,
long-term corporate strategy, and otherbusiness activities

Refer to financial statement
Note 44 Capital management

Annual Report,
page 176(1) Number andRefer to financial statement
Note 28 Deposits andBalances from Customers –analysed by product. We do
not disclose this information
by segments

Annual Report,
page 151

Refer to financial statement
Note 18 Loans and advances
to customer – analysed byproduct. We do not disclose
this segment.

Annual Report,
page 144

Global Systemically Important Bank (G-SIB)
score, by category
Systemic risk
management

FN-CB-000.A

Commercial banks
FN-CB240a.1

Topic

Activity metric(2)	Value of checking and savings accounts
by segment:
(a) Personal and(b) Small business(1) Number and(2) Value of loans by segment:	(a) Personal,(b) Small business and(c) Corporate

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Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Consumer finance
FN-CF270a.1

Selling practices

Percentage of total remuneration forcovered employees that is variable andlinked to amount of products and services
soldRefer to Determination ofvariable pay pool, under
Remuneration report of theAnnual Report

Annual Report,
page 66

FN-MF270a.4

Description of remuneration structure ofloan originators

Remuneration structure ofloan originators follow thesame structure as other
employees in the bank. Refer
to Summary of current totalcompensation elements, andDetermination of variable paypool under Remuneration
report of the Annual Report

Annual Report,
page 66

FN-MF000.A(1) Number andMortgage finance

FN-MF000.B(2) value of mortgages originated bycategory: (a) residential and (b) commercial
Activity Metric(1) Number and(2) value of mortgages purchased bycategory: (a) residential and (b) commercial

Refer to financial statement
Note 42.4 for Credit risk
by geography and industry– analysed by industry,
specifically home loans. We do
not disclose this information
by segments or originationand purchase

Annual Report,
page 173

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Approach

Pillar 1 Responsible Banking

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Metrics and Targets

Risk Management

Strategy

Governance

Mapping to TCFD
Recommended Disclosures

Response & Reference

Sourcea.	Describe the organisation’s governance aroundclimate related risks and opportunitiesb.	Describe management’s role in assessing andmanaging climate-related risks and opportunities

Refer to Governance of sustainability

Sustainability Report, page 8

Refer to Governance of sustainability
Refer to “Ensuring robust risk management
processes” in Responsible financing

Sustainability Report, pages 8,21a.	Describe the climate-related risks and opportunities
the organisation has identified over the short,medium, and long termb.	Describe the impact of climate-related risks andRefer to Our sustainability strategy
opportunities on the organisation’s business,
Refer to “Ensuring robust risk management
strategy and financial planning
processes” in Responsible financingc.	Describe the resilience of the organisation’s strategy,
taking into consideration different climate-related
scenarios, including a 2oC or lower scenarioa.	Describe the organisation’s process for identifying
and assessing climate-related risks
Refer to “Ensuring robust risk management
processes” in Responsible financingb.	Describe the organisation’s process for managing
climate-related risksc.	Describe how the process for identifying, assessing Refer to “Ensuring robust risk management
and managing climate-related risks are integrated
processes” in Responsible financing
into the organisation’s overall risk management
Refer to “Credit risk management at DBS”
in Risk managementa.	Disclose the metrics used by the organisation toRefer to “Metrics and Targets,assess climate-related risks and opportunities in line Net Zero portfolio alignment”
with strategy and risk management process
in Responsible financingb.	Disclose Scope 1, Scope 2, and if appropriate, Scope Scope 1, 2 & 3 operational GHG emissions:
3 GHG emissions and related risks
Refer to Managing our environmental
footprint
Scope 3: Refer to “Metrics and targets, net
zero portfolio alignment" in Responsible
financingc.	Describe the targets used by the organisation
Refer to “Metrics and targets, net zero
to manage climate-related risks and opportunities
portfolio alignment" in Responsible financing
and performance against targets
and Summary of performance and targets in
Additional Disclosures

Sustainability Report, pages 7,
21

Sustainability Report, page 21
Sustainability Report, page 21
Annual Report, page 83

Sustainability Report, page 59
Sustainability Report, page 25

Sustainability Report, page 25
Sustainability Report, page 94

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Methodology for climate scenario analysis modelling
Transition risk
Transition risk scenario analysis is conducted in DBS using
a suite of Climate Scenario Analysis (CSA) models. The CSA
translates the effects of policy and regulation changes,
technology development and changes in consumer
preferences as defined by a set of standard climate
scenarios (for example, from the Network of Greening the
Financial System (NGFS)) into impacts to key financial drivers
identified for each sector.
The CSA is based on a bottom-up approach where relevant
company and industry information such as company
financials and emissions data are used to determine theimpact on the company’s credit rating, leveraging on the
NGFS scenarios.
Scenario data include, for example, primary, secondary, andfinal energy consumption, emissions data, carbon price,
price indices for key energy variables. The data used are
sector-specific and may be further expanded to capture
key dynamics of specific sectors. A total of nine sectors
selected based on their significance within the IBG portfolio
and carbon emissions contribution were included in thetransition risk scenario analyses. These include Power, Oiland Gas, Automotive, Aviation, Shipping, Real Estate, Steel,
Chemicals, as well as Food and Agribusiness.
We used relevant company financials and industryspecific data to perform the bottom-up modelling for eachcompany. The methodology identifies and assesses how key
drivers such as production volume, unit cost of production,
selling price, capital expenditure and asset value, impact
the financial statements of companies and consequently
changes to credit ratings over the forecast horizon.
To assess the rest of the portfolio not covered by the CSA
models, a top-down analysis was conducted wherebycompanies were selected based on their materiality, data
availability and representativeness of the sector. Key insights(1)

Source: IPCC AR6 Report

Scenario models

Emissions andclimate forcing

Sector-agnostictransition parameters

Key drivers• Carbon price• Emissions intensity

Company-level ﬁnancial
statements(scenario-adjusted)

Credit score model

VolumeIncome statement

Climate impacts

Climate projections

Socioeconomic
information

Unit cost
Sector-speciﬁctransition parameters
As example:• Growth rate of different
modes of transportation• Information on
power plants• Battery cost

Price

Balance sheet

Capital expenditure

Cash ﬂow statement

Internal credit
rating model

Asset value

derived from these companies in the bottom-up analysis
were then extrapolated to the rest of the corporate lending
portfolio.
Physical risk
The forward-looking physical risk analysis is conducted basedon the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSP)(1) as described below:• V ery high climate change scenario (SSP5-8.5):
Low mitigation scenario in which total greenhousegas emissions triple by 2075 and global averagetemperatures rise by 3.3-5.7 °C by 2100.
• High climate change scenario (SSP3-7.0):
Limited mitigation scenario in which total greenhousegas emissions double by 2100 and global averagetemperatures rise by 2.8-4.6 °C by 2100.
• Intermediate climate change scenario (SSP2-4.5):
Strong mitigation scenario in which total greenhousegas emissions stabilise around current levels until 2050
and then decline but not reaching net zero by 2100.
This scenario is expected to result in global averagetemperatures rising by 2.1-3.5 °C by 2100.

• L ow climate change scenario (SSP1-2.6):
Aggressive mitigation scenario in which total greenhousegas emissions reduce to net zero by 2050, resulting in
global average temperatures rising by 1.3-2.4 °C by 2100.
Limitations
Climate risk scenario analysis is an important tool to assess
the resilience of a bank’s business models and strategies
to a range of plausible climate related pathways, andto determine the impact of climate-related risk drivers
on overall risk profile. Outcome of scenario analysis canalso be used to assess the risk implications of various
decarbonisation pathways and deviations therefrom.
Meanwhile, since the area of climate scenario analysis
and the associated modelling is still evolving and an
industry standard has yet to emerge, it is important thatthe uncertainties and limitations associated with climate
scenario analysis are understood to ensure that the results
are interpreted and used appropriately:

improvements of the scenarios are expected and notedon NGFS scenarios. Users will need to understand theimplications and adjust the models accordingly.
2)	Extended horizon: Time horizon of over 30 years istypical of scenario analysis (e.g., transition risk analysis
typically goes to at least 2050 to align with net zero goal
horizon, while physical risk analysis can be of longer
horizon). This is much longer than typical businessplanning horizon, with uncertainties arising fromtechnological development, demographic change, andclimate tipping point events, among others.
3)	Data: Bottom-up firm level analysis requires granular
data such as absolute emissions or intensity for various
scope of a firm’s activities, which currently varies in termsof availability, granularity, and accuracy.
4)	Methodology: Modelling practices are still evolving in
the absence of market standards, in particular on
physical risk modelling due to the heavy reliance on goodquality location-specific data and hazard estimates.
With the ongoing improvement of data availability andupdates in scenarios and tools available in the market,
it is expected that the methodology of modelling thetransmission mechanism of climate related financial risks
be further fine-tuned over time.
With the focus on climate risk scenario analysis by theindustry and regulators, it is expected that continuous effort
will be invested to address such limitations over the next
couple of years.

1)	Climate scenarios: With the growth in scenario analysis
use cases, and as industry practitioners and regulators
gain more insights therefrom, ongoing updates andFrom Ambition to Action DBS Group Holdings Ltd Sustainability Report 2023

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Selected ESG-related Awards, Indices and Ratings
Selected sustainability awards

External ESG Ratings

Global / Regional

B. ESG Indices

C. Ratings
CDP (Formerly the Carbon
Disclosure Project)

Euromoney - World's
Best Bank for Corporate
Responsibility

Global Finance – Outstanding
Leadership in Transition/
Sustainability-linked Loans

S&P Global Sustainability
Yearbook Member

ASEAN Rural Development
and Poverty Eradication(RDPE) Leadership Awards

Bloomberg Gender
Equality Index

Singapore

China• Best Sustainable• Best Green ForeignBank,
Financial Institution
FinanceAsia Awards
Award 2022
• Best Bank for ESG,
Yangcheng Evening
Best Bank Awards,
News
Asiamoney• Best Green Loan,• Best ESG Private Bank,Country Awards forPrivate Capital Awards,
Sustainable Finance,
The Asset
The Asset• Singapore Corporate• 2023 Best Practice,
Governance Award,
2023 Best cases for
Securities Investors
Green Finance,
Association of Singapore
Green Finance forum(SIAS)
of 60• Best ESG Solutions– Trade Finance,
Treasurise Awards,
The Asset• B in Feb 2024
• B in December 2022
• B in December 2021

Steward Leadership 25

Singapore and Domestic markets
Hong Kong

Indonesia

TaiwanIndia• Best Bank for
Sustainable Finance,
Country Awards for
Sustainable Finance,
The Asset• International
Biggest ESG Impact,
FinanceAsia Awards,
FinanceAsia• ESG Sustainability of
the Year, Financial
Institutions Awards,
Bloomberg• Best ESG Private
Bank, Private CapitalAwards,The Asset• Best Green Loan,
Country Awards for
Sustainable Finance,
The Asset• Best Sustainabilitylinked Loan,
Country Awards for
Sustainable Finance,
The Asset• Best Leader for
Sustainability,
Indonesia Financial
Top Leader Awards,
Warta Ekonomi• CNBC Green Business
Rating,
CNBC Indonesia• Best Blue Loan,
Country Awards for
Sustainable Finance
The Asset• Gender Equity
Awards,
Ministry of Labour• Taiwan Corporate
Sustainability Award,
Taiwan Institute for
Sustainable Energy• ESG Award
for Foreign Company,
Global Views Magazine• Social Impact,
BrandWagon AceAwardsThe Financial Express• Best Organisations
for Women, ET Best
Brands,The Economic Times• 100 Best Hall of fame,
Best companies for
Women in India,
Avtar and Seramount• Exceptional Employee
Experience, ET Human
Capital ExperienceAwards,The Economic Times

For the Climate Change assessment,
DBS received the following scores:

Bloomberg Gender
Equality Index
Constituent(2018 – 2023)

RobecoSAM Corporate
Sustainability Assessment

DBS received the following overall scoresand rankings in the Banking industry:• 53/ 100 | 88th percentile in 2023
• 63/ 100 | 72th percentile in 2022
• 64/ 100 | 80th percentile in 2021

MSCI

In the MSCI ESG Ratings assessment(1)(on a scale of AAA-CCC), DBS received
thefollowing ratings:• A in September 2023
• AA in December 2022
• AA in December 2021

Sustainalytics
FTSE4Good Developed
Index and FTSE4GoodASEAN 5 Index (2017 –2023)

DBS was assessed by Sustainalytics(2) andreceived the following ESG Risk Ratings andrankings in the Banking industry:• 18.5 | (Low risk) | 20th percentile inNovember 2023
• 20.2 (Medium risk) | 22nd percentile in
December 2022
• 19.9 (Low risk) | 18th percentile in October
2021(1)	The use by DBS Bank Ltd of any MSCI ESG Research LLC or its affiliates (“MSCI”) data, and the use of MSCI logos, trademarks, service marks or index names herein, do not constitute asponsorship, endorsement, recommendation, or promotion of DBS Bank Ltd by MSCI. MSCI services and data are the property of MSCI or its information providers, and are provided “as-is” andwithout warranty. MSCI names and logos are trademarks or service marks of MSCI.
(2)	Copyright ©2020 Sustainalytics. All rights reserved. This report contains information developed by Sustainalytics (www.sustainalytics.com). Such information and data are proprietary of
Sustainalytics and/ or its third-party suppliers (Third Party Data) and are provided for informational purposes only. They do not constitute an endorsement of any product or project, nor aninvestment advice and are not warranted to be complete, timely, accurate or suitable for a particular purpose. Their use is subject to conditions available at https://www.sustainalytics.com/
legal-disclaimers.
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Commitments and memberships
Name

Description

Supporting the transition
Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA)GRI Technical Committee

Sustainability Reporting Advisory
Committee (SRAC)

DBS is a signatory of the industry-led, UN-convened NZBA. As part of our commitment, DBS
conducts annual reporting on our performance against our decarbonisation targets in accordancewith NZBA guidelines.

DBS was the co-chair in the disclosure workstream of the MAS-convened GFIT. The taskforce
comprises representatives from financial institutions, corporates, non-governmental organisations,and financial industry associations which aims to (i) develop a taxonomy; (ii) improve disclosures;(iii) foster green finance solutions; and (iv) enhance environmental risk management practices offinancial institutions.
DBS sits on the global GRI Technical Committee and supports the development of the banking
standard, which will be one of three standards (banking, insurance and capital markets) developed
for the financial services sector. DBS is the sole representative from Asia Pacific.
DBS is a member of the SRAC, which was jointly set up by Singapore’s Accounting and Corporate
Regulatory Authority (ACRA) and the Singapore Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo). The committee
is responsible for developing a sustainability reporting roadmap for Singapore-incorporated
companies, including the adoption of the International Financial Reporting Standards’ (IFRS)
sustainability standards.

Taskforce for Climate-related
Financial Disclosures (TCFD)

DBS reports in line with the recommendations by the task force. Refer to Responsible Financing,
TCFD Index and Methodology for TCFD.

Taskforce for Nature-related
Financial Disclosures (TNFD) ForumDBS is a member of the TNFD Forum whose members support the work of the taskforce by
providing technical expertise and practical experience.

Green Investment Principles
for the Belt and Road (GIP)

China Green Finance Committee

The GFC was established in 2015, under the guidance and support of the People’s Bank of China.
The GFC and its members support policy research and facilitate international cooperation on green
finance. DBS Bank China joined the GFC as an official member in 2022.

Global Compact
Network Singapore (GCNS)

DBS is signatory to the GCNS.

Glasgow Financial Alliancefor Net Zero (GFANZ)

DBS co-led a workstream as part of the GFANZ guidance paper on ‘Financing the Managed
Phaseout of Coal-Fired Power Plants in Asia Pacific’.

Green Skills Committee

DBS is a member of the Green Skills Committee (GSC), which is convened by the Ministry of Tradeand Industry (MTI). The GSC aims to support the development of skills in line with evolving industry
needs, as Singapore moves towards a sustainable, lower-carbon economy

Monetary Authorityof Singapore (MAS)DBS actively participated in several MAS projects and working groups, such as on managed coalphase out. We have committed to being a partner in the MAS-convened project, the Transition
Credits Coalition (TRACTION). The project aims to explore the creation of credible, high-integrity
transition credits to support the managed and early phase out of coal power plants.

United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) DBS is signatory to the UNGC.
World Business Council for
Sustainable Development(WBCSD)DBS is a member of WBCSD and participates in several project groups including the working groupon Redefining Value, which helps companies address the link between sustainability efforts andvaluation.
Our CEO, Mr. Piyush Gupta, was elected to the Executive Committee in 2020, and is the vice-chairof WBCSD appointed as of October 2021.

Digital-related

Sustainability Risk Management
Equator Principles (EP)

Description

Sustainable Development

Disclosure and Transparency
Monetary Authority of Singapore’s
Green Finance Industry Taskforce(GFIT)Name

DBS is a signatory of the EP. Please refer to the Responsible Financing chapter
for our related disclosures
DBS has adopted the voluntary principles to promote green investmentin projects in the Belt and Road countries.

Green Digital Finance Alliance (GDFA)Our CEO, Mr. Piyush Gupta, is part of the Advisory Board.

IMDA Advisory Council on Ethical Useof Artificial Intelligence and Data

Our CEO, Mr. Piyush Gupta, is a council member.

Monetary Authority of Singapore’s
Project Greenprint

DBS is an active participant in the MAS-led initiative to enhance the ESG data ecosystem within
Singapore with the aim of creating a national ESG data utility for SMEs. On November 2023,
MAS launched Gprint (pronounced “Greenprint”), an integrated digital platform that harnesses
technology to simplify how the financial sector and real economy collect, access and act uponenvironmental, social and governance (ESG) data to support their sustainability initiatives.

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Approach

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Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

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CONTENTS

Description

Operational
RE100

DBS is a member of the RE100, our commitment can be found in the Managing Our Environmental
Footprint chapter.

OthersAsia Securities Industry & Financial
Markets Association (ASIFMA)DBS is a member of ASIFMA. Andrew Ng, our Head of Treasury and Markets, is Co-Vice Chair of theBoard of Directors, and a member of the Executive Committee.

Association of Banksin Singapore (ABS)DBS is a governing member of the Association of Banks in Singapore. Our CEO, Mr. Piyush Gupta,
is a council member. DBS participates in the Public Policy Committee, the Sustainable FinanceCommittee, the Carbon Markets Working Group, and the Transition Planning & Finance Working
Group.

Industry Advisory Panel (IAP)

DBS is represented by our CSO as a co-chair of the working group on disclosures and leads a newworkstream on data for disclosures

International Capital Markets
Association (ICMA)DBS is a member of ICMA and is a member (underwriter) of ICMA’s Green Bond Principles and
ICMA’s Social Bond Principles.

International Swaps andDerivatives Association (ISDA)DBS is a member of ISDA. Andrew Ng, our Head of Treasury and Markets, sits on the Board of
Directors of ISDA. DBS participates in the APAC ESG Working Group, the Energy, Commodities andDeveloping Products Asia Pacific Group, and the APAC Legal and Regulatory Committee (SouthAsia).

The Institute of Banking
and Finance Singapore (IBF)The IBF Council provides guidance on the strategic direction of IBF to ensure that it remains
relevant and adds value to the financial industry. Our CEO, Mr Piyush Gupta, is Vice Chairman of
the IBF Council.

Institute of International Finance (IIF)

DBS is a member institution and participates in the IIF sustainable finance working group.

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Independent limited assurance report on sustainability information
To the Board of Directors of DBS Group Holdings Ltd
We have been engaged by DBS Group Holdings (“the Company” or “DBS”) to undertake a limited assurance engagement inrespect of the selected sustainability information from the 2023 Sustainability Report of the Company described below for
the year ended 31 December 2023 (“the Identified Sustainability Information”).
Identified Sustainability Information
The respective Identified Sustainability Information for the year ended 31 December 2023 is set out below:
1.		 GRI 2-7: Employees
2.		 GRI 2-8: Workers who are not employees
3.		 GRI 2-30: Collective bargaining agreements
4.		 GRI 201-1: Direct economic value generated and distributed
5.		 GRI 205-2: Communication and training about anti-corruption policies and procedures6.		 GRI 302-1: Energy consumption within organization
7.		 GRI 303-3: Water withdrawal
8.		 GRI 305-1: Direct (Scope 1) GHG emissions
9.

GRI 305-2: Energy indirect (Scope 2) GHG emissions

10. GRI 305-3: Other indirect (Scope 3) GHG emissions
11. GRI 306-3: Waste generated
12. GRI 308-1: New suppliers that were screened using environmental criteria
13. GRI 401-1: New employee hires and employee turnover
14. GRI 404-1: Average hours of training per year per employee
15. GRI 404-3: Percentage of employees receiving regular performance and career development reviews
16. GRI 405-1: Diversity of governance bodies and employees
17. GRI 414-1: New suppliers that were screened using social criteria
Our assurance engagement was with respect to the year ended 31 December 2023. We have not performed any
procedures with respect to (i) earlier periods and (ii) any other elements included in the Company’s 2023 Sustainability
Report, and in the Annual Report, website and other publications, and therefore do not express any conclusion thereon.

Reporting Criteria
The Identified Sustainability Information has been assessed against the Global Reporting Initiative (“GRI”) Sustainability
Reporting Standards 2021 (“the Reporting Criteria”).
Management’s Responsibility for the Identified Sustainability Information
Management of the Company is responsible for the preparation of the Identified Sustainability Information in accordancewith the Reporting Criteria. The responsibility includes designing, implementing and maintaining internal control relevant to
the preparation of Identified Sustainability Information that is free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.
Practitioner’s Independence and Quality Management
We have complied with the independence and other ethical requirements of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory
Authority (ACRA) Code of Professional Conduct and Ethics for Public Accountants and Accounting Entities (ACRA Code),which is founded on fundamental principles of integrity, objectivity, professional competence and due care, confidentiality
and professional behaviour.
Our firm applies Singapore Standard on Quality Management 1 which requires the firm to design, implement and operatea system of quality management including policies or procedures regarding compliance with ethical requirements,
professional standards and applicable legal and regulatory requirements.
Practitioner’s Responsibility
Our responsibility is to express a limited assurance conclusion on the Identified Sustainability Information based on theprocedures we have performed and the evidence we have obtained. We performed our limited assurance engagementin accordance with Singapore Standard on Assurance Engagements 3000 (Revised) – Assurance Engagements other than
Audits or Reviews of Historical Financial Information and, in respect of greenhouse gas emissions included in the Identified
Sustainability Information, Singapore
Standard on Assurance Engagements 3410 – Assurance Engagements on Greenhouse Gas Statements (collectively, the“Standards”). These Standards require that we plan and perform our work to form the conclusion about whether the
Identified Sustainability Information is free from material misstatement. The extent of our procedures depends on our
professional judgment and our assessment of the engagement risk.
A limited assurance engagement involves assessing the suitability in the circumstances of the Company’s use of theReporting Criteria as the basis for the preparation of the Identified Sustainability Information, assessing the risks of material
misstatement of the Identified Sustainability Information whether due to fraud or error, responding to the assessed risks asnecessary in the circumstances, and evaluating the overall presentation of the Identified Sustainability Information. A limited

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assurance engagement is substantially less in scope than a reasonable assurance engagement in relation to both the risk
assessment procedures, including an understanding of internal control, and the procedures performed in response to theassessed risks.
The procedures selected included inquiries, observation of processes performed, inspection of documents, analyticalprocedures, evaluating the appropriateness of quantification methods and reporting policies, and agreeing or reconcilingwith underlying records. Given the circumstances of the engagement, we also performed the following:• interviewed management and personnel in Group Procurement Services, Group Human Resources, and Corporate Real
Estate Strategy & Administration in relation to the Identified Sustainability Information;• obtained an understanding of how the Identified Sustainability Information is gathered, collated and aggregated internally;• performed limited substantive testing, on a selective basis, of the Identified Sustainability Information (i) to verify theassumptions, estimations and computations made in relation to the Selected Sustainability Information; and (ii) to checkthat data had been appropriately measured, recorded, collated and reported, to the extent we considered necessary andappropriate to provide sufficient evidence for our conclusion; and• assessed the disclosure and presentation of the Identified Sustainability Information.

Pillar 2 Responsible Business Practices

Pillar 3 Impact Beyond Banking

Additional Disclosures

CONTENTS

Conclusion
Based on the procedures we have performed and the evidence we have obtained, nothing has come to our attention thatcauses us to believe that the Identified Sustainability Information for the year ended 31 December 2023 is not prepared, inall material respects, in accordance with the Reporting Criteria.
Purpose and Restriction on Distribution and Use
This report, including our conclusion, has been prepared solely for the Company in accordance with the letter ofengagement between us. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone otherthan the Company for our work or this report.

The procedures performed in a limited assurance engagement vary in nature and timing from, and are less in extent thanfor, a reasonable assurance engagement. Consequently, the level of assurance obtained in a limited assurance engagement
is substantially lower than the assurance that would have been obtained had a reasonable assurance engagement been
performed. Accordingly, we do not express a reasonable assurance opinion about whether the Company’s Identified
Sustainability Information has been prepared, in all material respects, in accordance with the Reporting Criteria.
Inherent Limitations
In designing these procedures, we considered the system of internal controls in relation to the Identified Sustainability
Information and reliance has been placed on internal controls where appropriate. Because of the inherent limitationsin any accounting and internal control system, errors and irregularities may nevertheless occur and not be detected.

Yours faithfully

The absence of a commonly used generally accepted reporting framework or a significant body of established practice on
which to draw to evaluate and measure subject matter allows for different, but acceptable, measurement techniques that
can affect comparability between entities.
The quantification of the greenhouse gas emissions data underlying the Identified Sustainability Information is subject
to inherent uncertainty because of incomplete scientific knowledge used to determine emissions factors and the values
needed to combine emissions of different gases, and the estimation uncertainty from the measurement and calculation
processes used to quantify emissions within the bounds of existing scientific knowledge. This can affect the ability to draw
meaningful comparison of the Company’s greenhouse gas emissions over time.

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Public Accountants and Chartered Accountants
Singapore
5 March 2024

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World’s Most Innovative Banks
Global FinanceDigital Workplace Team of the Year
Digital Workplace Group
Evident AI Index
Evident Insights

Best Innovation and Transformation(Corporate/ Institutional Digital Banks)
Global FinanceCash Management Survey:
Global Best Service (Non-FI)
Euromoney
World’s Best Bank for
Corporate Responsibility
Euromoney

12 Marina Boulevard, Marina Bay Financial Centre Tower 3, Singapore 018982
Tel: (65) 6878 8888 www.dbs.com Co. Reg. No. 199901152M

Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index
Bloomberg
FTSE4Good Developed Index
FTSE Russell
The Sustainability Yearbook
S&P Global
Asia’s Safest Bank
(15th consecutive year)
Global Finance@dbs.sg@dbsbank

DBS Bank