Singapore Regulator Ends DBS’ Six-Month Digital Banking Penalty
Singapore’s financial regulator is ending a six-month ban that restricted DBS Group Holdings Ltd. from non-essential activities, after the country’s largest lender improved weaknesses related to a series of glitches in its digital banking services.
The bank “has made substantive progress to address the shortcomings identified from service disruptions experienced by its customers in 2023,” the Monetary Authority of Singapore said in a statement on Tuesday. The measures that were effective on Nov. 1 included a ban on acquiring new business ventures and reducing the size of its local branch and ATM networks.
MAS is keeping the elevated additional capital requirement on DBS’ risk-weighted assets for operational risks, which was put in place in May 2023. The 1.8 times multiplier translated to about S$1.6 billion ($1.2 billion) in total additional regulatory capital at the time.
The regulator will closely monitor the bank’s progress on the remaining improvements as well as the effectiveness of the measures implemented, it said. The additional capital requirement will be lifted when the bank has showed its ability to maintain service availability and reliability, and handle any disruptions effectively, MAS said.
Retrenchments in Singapore fall for second straight quarter, employment growth cools
Retrenchments in Singapore fell for the second straight quarter while the hiring outlook improved, according to preliminary first-quarter labour market data released by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) on April 30.
The data also showed that total employment grew by 4,900 in the January to March quarter, down from 7,500 in the previous quarter.
The growth came wholly from Singaporeans and permanent residents (PRs).
At the same time, non-resident employment contracted for the first time since the third quarter of 2021 due to cooling labour demand, mainly in construction as tighter foreign worker quotas kicked in.
Singapore’s Ninja Van lays off about 10% of tech team in the region
Logistics provider Ninja Van has laid off about 10 per cent of the region’s tech team.
Following a recent cost evaluation, the company has determined that “less than 10 per cent of the region’s tech team is no longer required”, a Ninja Van spokesperson said on Tuesday (Apr 30) in response to CNA’s queries.
“Cost optimisation has always been an ongoing lever to ensure Ninja Van Group’s sustainable growth,” the spokesperson added.
“In line with the group’s direction, our tech department has been actively implementing cost-control measures, including infrastructural reorganisation and outsourcing.”
Microsoft to Invest $1.7 Billion in Indonesia for AI, Cloud
Microsoft Corp. will invest $1.7 billion to build out cloud computing and artificial intelligence infrastructure in Indonesia, betting on Southeast Asia’s biggest economy to spur growth.
Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella announced the outlay, to be made over four years, after meeting with President Joko Widodo in Jakarta on Tuesday. The company also pledged to help train 2.5 million people in Southeast Asia with AI skills, including 840,000 in Indonesia.
Microsoft’s leader is on a three-country tour of Southeast Asia. The region, once neglected by corporate chieftains who focused on giant economies such as China and India, has become more popular of late as CEOs jockey for position during a time of rising geopolitical tensions. It’s one of the biggest battlegrounds for technology giants and startups from China and the US. Before Nadella, Nvidia Corp.’s Jensen Huang and Apple Inc.’s Tim Cook also paid high-profile visits to the region, chasing a young and tech-savvy population as Chinese growth wanes.
Bangkok Airports Set for $4.8 Billion Expansion as Tourism Booms
The operator of Bangkok’s two main airports plans to spend about $4.8 billion to more than double capacity by the end of the decade to cope with a surge in post-pandemic tourism.
In the biggest expansion of Suvarnabhumi airport since it opened in 2006, two new runways, a new terminal and the expansion of the existing passenger terminal will increase annual capacity to 135 million travelers from about 60 million now, Airports of Thailand Pcl President Kerati Kijmanawat said in an interview. The project will cost about 140 billion baht ($3.8 billion), he said.
A new international terminal to be built at Don Mueang airport and renovation of the existing building, at a cost of 36 billion baht, will lift capacity to 50 million passengers a year by 2030 from 30 million now, he said. The older Don Mueang mostly handles regional and budget carriers.