DBS eyes bigger share of retail sector

SHANGHAI: DBS Group Holdings, Southeast Asia's largest bank, plans to add 30 to 40 outlets on the mainland in the near term as it tries to press into the competitive retail banking market.

The Singapore-based bank, which recently received approval to incorporate locally and which is expected to launch its mainland subsidiary in Shanghai on Monday, also said on Friday that it will more than quadruple its staff to 2,000 in the next five years to support its growth.

After 17 years of mainly concentrating on corporate banking and trade finance on the mainland, the bank is looking to move into the retail market, which would help raise mainland's contribution to its global profit to 7 to 9 percent from the less than 1 percent that the bank's operations here currently provide.