Earnings season is here once again, with many companies having already announced their latest business updates or full financial results for the quarter ended 30 June 2026.
Among them are Singapore’s 3 major banks, DBS, UOB, and OCBC, which have all released their respective 2nd quarter and first half FY2026 financial results. As a shareholder of all 3 banks, I have published my reviews of their latest results, which you can find through the links below:
DBS (SGX: D05) – Results Released on 06 August 2026: https://www.thesingaporeaninvestor.sg/2026/08/06/dbs-group-holdings-limited-sgx-d05-2q-1h-fy2026-results-review/
UOB (SGX: U11) – Results Released on 07 August 2026: https://www.thesingaporeaninvestor.sg/2026/08/07/united-overseas-bank-limited-sgx-u11-2q-1h-fy2026-results-review/
OCBC (SGX: O39) – Results Released on 07 August 2026: https://www.thesingaporeaninvestor.sg/2026/08/07/oversea-chinese-banking-corporation-limited-sgx-o39-2q-1h-fy2026-results-review/
In this post, I will compare the financial performance reported by the 3 banks for both the 2nd quarter and first half of FY2026, together with their latest dividend distributions to shareholders.
Through this comparison, we will look at which bank delivered the strongest improvement in its latest results. In addition, we will also examine their current valuations to determine which of the three appears to be the ‘cheapest’ and which is currently trading at the ‘most expensive’ valuation:
Financial Results Comparison: 2Q FY2025 vs. 2Q FY2026:
Net Interest Income:
| DBS | UOB | OCBC | |
| Net Interest Income | Down -1.8% 2Q FY2025: S$3,648m 2Q FY2026: S$3,581m | Down -1.7% 2Q FY2025: S$2,336m 2Q FY2026: S$2,297m | Down -0.8% 2Q FY2025: S$2,283m 2Q FY2026: S$2,264m |
Amid the lower interest rate environment, all 3 banks saw their net interest income decline compared to the same period a year ago. However, OCBC reported the smallest decline among the 3, with its net interest income falling by just 0.8%, followed by UOB at 1.7% and DBS at 1.8%.
Net Fee & Commission Income:
| DBS | UOB | OCBC | |
| Net Fee & Commission Income | Up +25.1% 2Q FY2025: S$1,167m 2Q FY2026: S$1,460m | Up +4.6% 2Q FY2025: S$636m 2Q FY2026: S$665m | Up +27.4% 2Q FY2025: S$580m 2Q FY2026: S$739m |
While all 3 banks recorded an improvement in their net fee and commission income, the pace of growth varied significantly among them. Both DBS and OCBC achieved growth of more than 20%, whereas UOB saw a more modest increase of just over 4%.
Between DBS and OCBC, the latter delivered the stronger growth, with net fee and commission income rising by 27.4%, compared to 25.1% for DBS.
Other Non-Interest Income:
| DBS | UOB | OCBC | |
| Other Non- Interest Income | Up +14.7% 2Q FY2025: S$917m 2Q FY2026: S$1,052m | Up +28.2% 2Q FY2025: S$493m 2Q FY2026: S$632m | Up +70.6% 2Q FY2025: S$684m 2Q FY2026: S$1,167m |
Similar to their net fee and commission income, all 3 banks also recorded growth in their other non-interest income.
Among the 3, OCBC delivered the strongest growth, with its other non-interest income increasing by 70.6%. This was primarily driven by a significant rise in trading income, as well as stronger contributions from its life and general insurance businesses.
Net Profit Attributable to Shareholders:
| DBS | UOB | OCBC | |
| Net Profit Attributable to Shareholders | Up +9.0% 2Q FY2025: S$2,824m 2Q FY2026: S$3,079m | Up +10.5% 2Q FY2025: S$1,338m 2Q FY2026: S$1,478m | Up +22.3% 2Q FY2025: S$1,816m 2Q FY2026: S$2,221m |
Once again, all 3 banks reported a year-on-year increase in their net profit. In terms of growth, OCBC delivered the strongest performance with a 22.3% increase, followed by UOB with 10.5% growth and DBS with 9.0%.
Financial Results Comparison: 1H FY2025 vs. 1H FY2026:
Net Interest Income:
| DBS | UOB | OCBC | |
| Net Interest Income | Down -3.5% 1H FY2025: S$7,329m 1H FY2026: S$7,075m | Down -2.6% 1H FY2025: S$4,745m 1H FY2026: S$4,621m | Down -3.1% 1H FY2025: S$4,628m 1H FY2026: S$4,486m |
Due to the lower interest rate environment and the resulting compression in net interest margins, all 3 banks recorded lower net interest income compared to the previous year.
However, the extent of the decline varied among the 3. UOB saw the smallest drop, with net interest income decreasing by 2.6%, compared to declines of 3.1% for OCBC and 3.5% for DBS.
Net Fee & Commission Income:
| DBS | UOB | OCBC | |
| Net Fee & Commission Income | Up +20.5% 1H FY2025: S$2,442m 1H FY2026: S$2,942m | Down -2.1% 1H FY2025: S$1,330m 1H FY2026: S$1,302m | Up +25.6% 1H FY2025: S$1,126m 1H FY2026: S$1,414m |
UOB was the only bank that recorded a year-on-year decline in its net fee and commission income, as the improvement in the 2nd quarter was insufficient to offset the decline recorded in the 1st quarter.
In comparison, both DBS and OCBC delivered growth of more than 20%. Among the 2, OCBC reported the stronger improvement, with net fee and commission income increasing by 25.6%, compared to 20.5% for DBS.
Other Non-Interest Income:
| DBS | UOB | OCBC | |
| Other Non- Interest Income | Up +8.5% 1H FY2025: S$1,866m 1H FY2026: S$2,024m | Up +4.5% 1H FY2025: S$1,047m 1H FY2026: S$1,094m | Up +44.9% 1H FY2025: S$1,448m 1H FY2026: S$2,098m |
OCBC emerged as the clear standout in this area, with its other non-interest income surging by close to 45% year-on-year. This was significantly ahead of the other 2 banks, which only recorded single-digit percentage growth during the same period.
Net Profit Attributable to Shareholders:
| DBS | UOB | OCBC | |
| Net Profit Attributable to Shareholders | Up +5.0% 1H FY2025: S$5,721m 1H FY2026: S$6,009m | Up +3.1% 1H FY2025: S$2,828m 1H FY2026: S$2,915m | Up +13.4% 1H FY2025: S$3,699m 1H FY2026: S$4,195m |
While all 3 banks reported an improvement in their net profit, OCBC delivered the strongest growth among the 3, with net profit increasing by 13.4% year-on-year. This was followed by DBS at 5.0% and UOB at 3.1%.
Key Financial Ratios Comparison: 1Q FY2026 vs. 2Q FY2026:
Net Interest Margin:
| DBS | UOB | OCBC | |
| Net Interest Margin | Down -0.02pp 1Q FY2026: 1.89% 2Q FY2026: 1.87% | Down -0.08pp 1Q FY2026: 1.82% 2Q FY2026: 1.74% | Down -0.06pp 1Q FY2026: 1.76% 2Q FY2026: 1.70% |
Amid the lower interest rate environment, all 3 banks continued to experience a decline in their net interest margins. However, DBS recorded the smallest decline among the 3, with its net interest margin falling by only 0.02 percentage points.
At the same time, DBS maintained the highest net interest margin among the three banks at 1.87%, ahead of UOB at 1.74% and OCBC at 1.70%.
Return on Equity:
| DBS | UOB | OCBC | |
| Return on Equity | Up +0.9pp 1Q FY2026: 17.0% 2Q FY2026: 17.9% | Up +0.2pp 1Q FY2026: 11.5% 2Q FY2026: 11.7% ^^ | Up +1.4pp 1Q FY2026: 13.0% 2Q FY2026: 14.4% |
^^ – UOB did not disclose its return on equity for the 2nd quarter. The figure shown above was therefore derived based on the reported figures for the 1st quarter and first half of FY2026.
While all 3 banks reported a quarter-on-quarter improvement in their return on equity, the magnitude of improvement varied among them. OCBC recorded the strongest increase, with its return on equity rising by 1.4pp, followed by DBS with a 0.9pp improvement and UOB with a 0.2pp increase.
Despite OCBC’s stronger improvement, DBS continued to maintain the highest return on equity among the three banks at 17.9%, significantly ahead of OCBC at 14.4% and UOB at 11.7%.
Non-Performing Loans Ratio:
| DBS | UOB | OCBC | |
| Non-Performing Loans Ratio | No Change 1Q FY2026: 1.0% 2Q FY2026: 1.0% | Up +0.1pp 1Q FY2026: 1.5% 2Q FY2026: 1.6% | No Change 1Q FY2026: 0.9% 2Q FY2026: 0.9% |
Only UOB recorded a slight increase in its non-performing loans ratio, which was mainly due to a single real estate exposure in Greater China. Meanwhile, the ratio remained unchanged for both DBS and OCBC.
Among the three banks, OCBC reported the lowest non-performing loans ratio at 0.9%, followed by DBS at 1.0% and UOB at 1.6%.
Dividend Payouts to Shareholders: 1H FY2025 vs. 1H FY2026:
Among the 3 banks, only DBS provides a quarterly dividend payout, while both UOB and OCBC distribute dividends on a half-yearly basis.
In terms of dividend payout growth for the first half of FY2026, the performance across the 3 banks was as follows:
| DBS | UOB | OCBC | |
| Dividend Per Share | Up +8.0% 1H FY2025: 150.0 cents 1H FY2026: 162.0 cents | Down -20.0% 1H FY2025: 110.0 cents 1H FY2026: 88.0 cents | Up +14.6% 1H FY2025: 41.0 cents 1H FY2026: 47.0 cents |
Overall, UOB was the only bank that recorded a decline in its dividend payout, while both DBS and OCBC delivered higher payouts compared to the previous year. Among the 2, OCBC recorded the strongest growth, with its dividend payout increasing by 14.6%, ahead of DBS at 8.0%.
Which Bank Came Out on Top for 2Q & 1H FY2026?
Based on the above comparison, OCBC emerged as the clear standout in terms of overall improvements.
For both the 2nd quarter and first half of FY2026, OCBC delivered the strongest year-on-year growth in key financial metrics, including net fee and commission income, other non-interest income, and net profit. It also recorded the largest improvement in return on equity compared to the previous quarter, while maintaining the lowest non-performing loans ratio among the three banks.
DBS ranked a distant second, supported by its stronger performance in certain key areas. The bank recorded the smallest decline in net interest margin compared to the previous quarter, while also maintaining the highest net interest margin among the 3. In addition, DBS achieved the highest return on equity for the 2nd quarter.
Valuation Comparison (Based on Market Close on 07 August 2026)
| DBS | UOB | OCBC | |
| Share Price | S$76.33 | S$43.30 | S$30.30 |
| P/E Ratio | 19.18 | 15.78 | 17.34 |
| P/B Ratio | 3.01 | 1.40 | 2.02 |
| Dividend Yield ** | 4.01% | 4.18% | 3.27% |
** – The dividend yields for the 3 banks are calculated using their total FY2025 dividend payouts, including any special dividends: S$3.06 per share for DBS, S$1.81 per share for UOB, and S$0.99 per share for OCBC.
It comes as little surprise that DBS is once again the ‘most expensive’ among the 3 banks, with both its current P/E and P/B ratios being the highest.
At the other end of the spectrum, OCBC is no longer the ‘cheapest’ of the 3. That distinction now belongs to UOB, which currently has the lowest P/E and P/B ratios, while also offering the highest dividend yield among the 3 banks.
Closing Thoughts
Overall, the 3 Singapore banks delivered a steady set of results, with each of them achieving their own record-breaking milestones:
DBS: Achieved record highs in total income and net profit for 2Q FY2026. It also reported record net fee and commission income, driven by a new high in wealth management fees, which contributed to the bank achieving a record net profit for 1H FY2026.
UOB: Recorded a record level of wealth management fees for 1H FY2026, while customer-related treasury income also reached a new high.
OCBC: Achieved record highs in wealth management fees and net profit for 2Q FY2026, with its net profit for 1H FY2026 also reaching a new record.
However, when it comes to overall improvement, OCBC emerged as the clear standout. It delivered the strongest growth across key financial metrics for both the 2nd quarter and first half of FY2026. In addition, it recorded the largest improvement in return on equity compared to the previous quarter, while also maintaining the lowest non-performing loans ratio among the 3 banks.
Finally, as far as the current valuations of the 3 banks are concerned, DBS is once again the ‘most expensive’, with its P/E and P/B ratios being the highest among the 3. On the other hand, UOB is currently the ‘cheapest’, with the lowest P/E and P/B ratios, while also offering the highest dividend yield.
That said, valuation is only one of several factors investors should consider when deciding whether a company is suitable for investment. It is equally important to look beyond the valuation figures and assess other aspects of the business, including its historical financial performance, before making any investment decisions.
Disclaimer: At the time of writing, I am a shareholder of DBS, UOB, and OCBC.
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