When it comes to safety and security, Singapore's biggest lenders – DBS Bank, OCBC Bank, and United Overseas Bank – trumped all other banks in Asia to become the safest in the region.
A report by the Straits Times said the three banks have dominated the ranking of Asia's safest bank and rose amongst those in the world. The rankings were released by New York-based trade publication Global Finance.
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DBS grabbed the top spot in the top safest banks in Asia rankings, closely followed by OCBC Bank and United Overseas Bank. Lenders from Korea including Korea Development Bank, Export-Import Bank of Korea, and Industrial Bank of Korea came in fourth to sixth. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Bank managed to nab a spot at seventh.
Closing Asia's list of safest banks is China's China Development Bank, Agricultural Development Bank of China, and Export-Import Bank of China.
In the world rankings, DBS came in at 11th, OCBC Bank at 13th and United Overseas Bank at 14th. Leading the pack is Germany's own KfW, followed by Switzerland's Zürcher Kantonalbank.
"Despite the challenging macroeconomic environment in the past few years, DBS' operating performance has remained strong. Topping the Global Finance ranking is a testament to the resilience of the franchise, strong governance and risk management processes underpinning our businesses," DBS Chief Executive Piyush Gupta said in a statement.
For Global Finance Publisher and Editorial Director Joseph Giarraputo, Asia has been of the most robust regions globally in the past year as other parts of the world are wrecked by economic uncertainties.
"The safest banks in the region in our ranking are those that have done the best job in offering security and stability in the face of a bullish economic environment, to provide companies and investors with a consistent measurement for comparing the strength of institutions," he told the Straits Times.
The Global Finance ranking of the world's safest banks has recognised outstanding banks since 1992. Banks were selected through an analysis and evaluation of their assets and their long-term credit rating from agencies such as Moody's, Standard & Poor's and Fitch Ratings.
