DBS : D05 -0.14% on Friday (Jan 10) announced that it will redeem all US$1 billion of its 3.3 per cent perpetual capital securities on Feb 27, the first call date of the securities.

 

The securities will be subsequently cancelled and delisted from the Singapore Exchange. The Monetary Authority of Singapore has approved the securities&rsquo redemption, said DBS.

 

The securities will be redeemed at the optional redemption amount of US$1,000 per calculation amount with the distribution accrued.

 

The securities are part of the group&rsquo s US$30 billion global medium-term note programme.

DBS Group Holdings says it will elect to and will redeem all of its outstanding US$1 billion 3.3% perpetual securities on Feb 27.

 

The perps were issued under the bank&rsquo s US$30 billion global medium term note programme on Feb 21, 2020, and was first callable in 2025. Buyers of the perps had to purchase them in denominations of US$200,000 and integral multiples of US$1,000 in excess.

 

DBS had the option of redeeming the perps on Feb 27 or on any distribution date thereafter. If the securities are not deemed, the distribution rate would have been reset on Feb 27 and every five years thereafter to a rate equal to the prevailing five-year US dollar treasury rate at the time plus 1.915% per annum.

 

Following the redemption, the securities will be cancelled and delisted from the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited (SGX-ST).

 

The securities will be redeemed at the optional redemption amount of US$1,000 per calculation amount with the distribution accrued.

 

On Feb 27, the redemption price for the securities will become due and payable. Any distribution will cease to accrue on or after the redemption date. DBS will then pay the moneys to the holders of the securities.

They close at S$45.44, up 2.11% for the day, after strong earnings in 2024

 

Shares of Singapore&rsquo s biggest bank DBS : D05 +2.11% reached S$45 for the first time on Wednesday (Jan 8).

 

The stock crossed that milestone to trade at S$45.14 by Wednesday afternoon, rising about 1.5 per cent. It then climbed further to close at S$45.44, up 2.11 per cent for the day. About 6.5 million shares changed hands.

 

The shares already hit record highs a few times late last year, on the back of strong earnings, with OCBC and UOB also rallying strongly. DBS was the second best-performing stock for the year, rising 43.9 per cent.

 

Analysts are bullish on Singapore&rsquo s three banks, and believe that they are set to post earnings growth in 2025, given higher-for-longer rates. They also view the bank sector as a beneficiary of global market uncertainties and rising geopolitical tensions.

 

Among the three lenders, DBS reported the strongest wealth-management income growth in its third-quarter results it also posted the second-highest net profit, at 15 per cent year on year for the period, behind UOB&rsquo s 16.5 per cent.

 

The strong performance of the banks drove the Straits Times Index to a gain of nearly 17 per cent for 2024 &ndash its best year since 2017.

 

RHB said in a note on Wednesday: &ldquo Singapore banks ended 2024 as the best performers, with the sector posting total returns of 44 per cent. This was driven by a combination of a higher-for-longer rate environment and strong earnings delivery.

 

&ldquo We see Singapore banks as the most defensive option &ndash the best place to weather the US dollar strength and should FFR cuts pan out milder than expected,&rdquo it added, referring to the cuts in the US federal funds rate.