Hub / regional bank
DBS
Asia's #3 private bank by AUM runs NRI as a named region — Singapore booking, DIFC beachhead, 500-branch India base.
Dedicated NRI team
Yes
Strategy tenure
in India since 1994; NRI a named private-bank region since at least 2024
India onshore arc
Onshore active
Hubs
Singapore, Dubai, Hong Kong, India onshore
DBS is the only regional bank that has institutionalised the NRI corridor as a named organisational region: its private bank runs a 'Middle East, Africa, NRI' region under Vikas Jaidka, with a dedicated Head of Private Banking for Middle East & Africa (Loic Voide, ex-Deutsche Bank Switzerland CEO) based at its DIFC branch since August 2025. The offshore desks (Singapore booking, Hong Kong NRI desk, Dubai) sit on top of a deep India onshore base — a presence dating to 1994, scaled by the forced amalgamation of Lakshmi Vilas Bank in November 2020 to roughly 500 branches — feeding affluent NRI clients through DBS Treasures (INR 30 lakh threshold, one-hour digital NRI account opening) up to the private bank.
Why it matters
DBS is the structural benchmark for the NRI corridor: it is one of the few banks to name NRI in a senior coverage title — Vikas Jaidka is its senior market head of NRI — and its play spans the full pyramid — mass-affluent Treasures onshore (50k+ customers, one-hour NRI onboarding) to UHNW booking in Singapore, with the 2025 DIFC leadership hire extending the funnel to Gulf-based Indian wealth. Competitors building NRI desks are assembling what DBS already runs as an integrated region.
By the numbers
USD 236.6bn
DBS high net worth AUM (third in Asian Private Banker's Asia 2024 AUM league table)
DBS newsroom · Apr 2025 · self-reported
50,000+
DBS Treasures customers in India, with a target to double in three years; NRI 'a core focus area'
Hubbis (Richa Tripathi interview) · 2024 · self-reported
The journey
Loic Voide named Head of Private Banking Middle East & Africa, based at DIFC
DBS appoints Loic Voide — previously CEO and Chief Country Officer of Deutsche Bank (Switzerland) — as Head of Private Banking for Middle East & Africa, effective 1 August 2025, based at the DIFC branch and reporting to Vikas Jaidka, Region Head (Middle East, Africa, NRI), DBS Private Bank. The release discloses HNW AUM of USD 236.6 billion (April 2025) and a #3 rank in Asian Private Banker's Asia 2024 AUM league table.
Enriched HNI/NRI wealth proposition in India; one-hour digital NRI account opening
DBS Bank India launches an enhanced wealth proposition for HNIs and NRIs — preferential FX rates for international transfers, waived service fees, zero ATM withdrawal fees, and NRI account opening completed within an hour — and inaugurates its third flagship branch in Indiranagar, Bengaluru. Treasures eligibility is a Total Relationship Value of more than INR 30 lakh.
Hong Kong NRI desk demand grows; Treasures Private Client launched in India
DBS Private Bank flags growing demand at its Hong Kong NRI desk; Vikas Jaidka is identified as head of Middle East, Africa, and NRI. DBS had recently launched Treasures Private Client in India with bespoke wealth solutions.
30 years in India; target to double 50,000+ Treasures base; NRI 'a core focus area'
In its 30th year in India, DBS India reports more than 50,000 Treasures customers with a plan to double the base within three years, expanding beyond metros into Surat, Coimbatore and Madurai, with NRI customers a core focus area.
Lakshmi Vilas Bank amalgamated into DBS Bank India
The RBI-directed amalgamation of Lakshmi Vilas Bank into DBS Bank India Limited takes effect on 27 November 2020; DBS Group injects INR 2,500 crore (SGD 463 million) into DBIL, giving DBS a large onshore branch network and customer base.
Five-year Middle East wealth expansion plan; expanded DIFC premises
DBS Private Bank unveils new, expanded DIFC office premises and a plan to double private banking headcount in Dubai by 2023 and triple revenue over five years. Dubai branch revenue had grown 20% per annum over seven years.
First Singapore bank licensed at DIFC
DBS establishes its Dubai branch in DIFC — the beachhead that later becomes the base for its Middle East & Africa private banking build.
DBS enters India
DBS's India presence dates to 1994 — three decades before the current NRI wealth push. The bank's India wealth head framed 2024 as its 30th year in the country.
Connections
6 sources · all linked
DBS newsroom (14 Jul 2025) · Hubbis (Richa Tripathi interview) · DBS newsroom · Hubbis · DBS newsroom · DBS newsroom