Banks must consolidate: MM
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Sat 26, 2010 - Straits Times
Banks must consolidate: MM
By Fiona Chan & Gabriel Chen
TWO local banks - not three - may be the right number for Singapore, so that they can expand both locally and overseas in a meaningful way, Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew said last night.
'I would have preferred personally that there be only two banks, because I don't think Singapore is big enough for three banks,' he told 600 bankers gathered at the Shangri-La ballroom for the 37th annual Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) dinner.
'But neither OCBC nor UOB was going to combine or be taken over by DBS, so we're left with (three) but I think in the end, there must be further consolidation.' He added: 'You can't go abroad in a big way because there's a limit to what you can do in the Singapore market, and you need a big solid bank with the capabilities and the capital to debt ratios to go abroad.'
Identifying China and India as huge potential markets in which Singaporean banks can grow, as well as smaller markets in Indonesia and Malaysia, Mr Lee said: 'I don't see three banks as capable of making that foray as two banks, maybe eventually one bank.'
'I mean, you just look at the capitalisation of the big banks in the US and then you look here,' he added.
Singapore's banking scene already underwent a period of consolidation in the late 1990s, when the number of local banks dwindled from seven to the present three. This came after the Government decided to let foreign banks have greater freedom to operate in the local market, in order to increase the standards of the banking industry.
Read the full story in Saturday's edition of The Straits Times.
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i hope that is not going to happen......
Further consolidation of the big 3 have serious implication for Singapore and Singaporean........
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I wonder why he didnt say the same for our cable tv operators in spore, not to mention 3 telco's competing for 4 million sporeans and foreigners.
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Yes, why not merge M1, starhub and singtel? Guess Temasek earns convenient quick big bucks from these. For this he will never want to suggest consolidation for these, indirectly under him.
He is too free as he said these days he has nothing much to do only do some forecasting. With so much free time he is now focusing on the banks. The bankers and others working in the banks are going to hate him for this if the consolidation materialises. pi shang ni de wu ya mouth, old lee !
Time for him to bid farewell and rest in peace forever!
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more local bankers to be retrenched with the merge (than consolidate)...SO LOCAL BANKERS - TIME TO GO FOREIGN OR BECOME EXPATRIATE....
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Why is this old man so keen to comment about these local banks? Is he aiming to get DBS to take over OCBC and UOB? If he opens his mouth to get UOB and OCBC merge with DBS, die die OCBC and UOB may have to obey him. He never changes his nuisance lol, that time he was not happy about having 2 TV stations mediacorpse and mediawork in Singapore stating that sg is too small to have two TV stations compete with each other and as such there is no more mediawork by SPH. Now I guess he is going to do the same to OCBC and UOB.
Better learn to mind his own business and shut up.
Perhaps, OCBC and UOB should just contribute part of their profit to him to shut his mouth. Everything is money to him.
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siao liao, maybe DBS chairman and CEO are thinking along these lines after MM speech. in future, I will not be surprised if DBS were to acquire OCBC forcefully or peacefully.
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Originally posted by Rooney9:
siao liao, maybe DBS chairman and CEO are thinking along these lines after MM speech. in future, I will not be surprised if DBS were to acquire OCBC forcefully or peacefully.
disgusting old man is god in Singapore , who dare not listen to him. .......... -
consolidate into one and take it under control by Temasek Hldg so additional funding for their "investments".
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Lets close DBS. Save UOB and OCBC. =)
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yes...eventually under ONE POWERFUL BANK and throw out one more time on another investment like Lehman....this time a bigger throw....to make back what was lost.....it would be the biggest gamble of all time....
lets rename this newly consolidated one and only bank as DBS ONE .....hmmm...sounds not bad .....
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whenever I call DBS, I got a philipino phonebanker always picked up my call one. are there no singaporean phonebankers left at DBS? or is it outsourced to philipines already the call centre?
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not surprising...cheap labour outsourced...they call it CALL CENTRE ONE (used to be operated by NTUC...but someone took over) ...other banks are using them too....
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what next? phillipino tellers at DBS because they are cheaper? phillipino IT staff again because they costs cheaper than the locals?
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yes they r cheaper...and they speak with american accent we locals probably cant...lol
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So that the banks can treat you like shit.
Don't like Bank A, then go to Bank B.
Which have the same terms and conditions, and also treat you like shit.
It the culture corporations in Singapore has acquired from the government.
People serve the entity. Like in transportation, utilities, and now for banking.
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'I mean, you just look at the capitalisation of the big banks in the US and then you look here,' he added
No wonder Singaporeans are doomed we have MM comparing market cap with the US.....of 350 million in population with world Fortune 1000 companies mostly in the states side.
And
We have MBT quoted Singapore is a landlock country.....
These guys don't lived in Singapore....!!!!!
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the target is ocbc, they've constantly commented that family run banks are not good, but old man wee shot back by saying the family is more committed to the banks and just because of the pay...ouch..
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I prefer OCBC and UOB. They give better service, better privileges.
POSB and DBS sucks... Its all about queuing, queuing... Not serving customers, only cares about their corporate clients, giving 1 counter dedicated to them, and 3 counters to serve the rest of the clients... and with 100 queuing for the 3 counters. -
If merge, means more pple will get retrench.
It that what he wants?
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Old Wee: MM, I have a proposition for you.
MM: ok what is it?
Old Wee: I will sell UOB to DBS or Temasek if they can pay 100 Billion dollars for the acquisition.
MM: 100 billion in which currency?
Old Wee: of course in SGD lar. I wish it to be USD or pounds instead.
MM: laughs, why so expensive? you cant take money with you to heaven when you die and besides you are almost one foot away from the grave.
Old Wee: laughs out loud. the irony of the pot calling the kettle black. I am only in my 70s, I have at least another 10 more years left in me, but you at 85 sir, probably have a few more years left. I bet with you will not live to see the world cup held in brazil in 2014.
MM: If I live till 2014, you will sell UOB to DBS for 10 billion renminbi, erm sorry singapore dollars.
Old Wee: What if you dun live till 2014?
MM: I will tell Hsien Loong to sell DBS at 10 billion dollars to UOB.
Old Wee: what a slimy bastard he is
MM: what a dickhead sucker he can be LOL
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Originally posted by Rooney9:
Old Wee: MM, I have a proposition for you.
MM: ok what is it?
Old Wee: I will sell UOB to DBS or Temasek if they can pay 100 Billion dollars for the acquisition.
MM: 100 billion in which currency?
Old Wee: of course in SGD lar. I wish it to be USD or pounds instead.
MM: laughs, why so expensive? you cant take money with you to heaven when you die and besides you are almost one foot away from the grave.
Old Wee: laughs out loud. the irony of the pot calling the kettle black. I am only in my 70s, I have at least another 10 more years left in me, but you at 85 sir, probably have a few more years left. I bet with you will not live to see the world cup held in brazil in 2014.
MM: If I live till 2014, you will sell UOB to DBS for 10 billion renminbi, erm sorry singapore dollars.
Old Wee: What if you dun live till 2014?
MM: I will tell Hsien Loong to sell DBS at 10 billion dollars to UOB.
hahahaha -
sell DBS to UOB or OCBC lar.
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Originally posted by Rooney9:
sell DBS to UOB or OCBC lar.
heard the lky and family owned the tat lee which was merged with dbs, is this true? He won't sell dbs, govt got lots of shares in there.sorry, i sidetrack a little here - none of the christian trolls interested in current affairs and post in other threads, they only appear in that eh to attack people.
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It was reported a few months ago that DBS profits down and UOB and OCBC were doing better than DBS, probably this old man is jealous of UOB and OCBC and want to have a hand to control these two banks. People make money he jealous.
Always like to tell others what to do. Actually, it is always what he wants people to do not what people want to do themselves. I hope king of hell is getting ready to counterattack him when this old lee reports to hell to tell him what to do.