The DBS Foundation is committed to supporting vulnerable groups through various programs and volunteer services, while supporting the growth of social enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that bring positive change to society. In Taiwan, DBS Foundation announced partnerships with Huashan Social Welfare Foundation and Money Trainer Financial Literacy Consulting to implement projects targeting the elderly and financially disadvantaged. In addition, it announced the winners of 2024 DBS Foundation Grant, with a total of 22 winners, including three from Taiwan: Silver Gate, Duofu Holidays and DOMI EARTH.
According to the National Development Council (NDC), Taiwan will become a super-aged society this year, with one in five residents expected to be over the age of 65. While aging is typically seen as a societal challenge, the DBS Foundation believes it can be an opportunity and is looking for innovative solutions that enhance the quality of life, improve healthcare and nutrition, combat social isolation and build a multigenerational workforce for the vulnerable.
DBS Foundation and DBS Group Strategic Marketing and Communications head Karen Ngui (魏洪英) said that since its establishment in 2014, DBS Foundation keeps investing resources to create positive impact. Recognizing that societal issues such as inequality and ageing are increasingly critical in many parts of Asia, DBS has pledged to commit up to S$1 billion (US$731 million) over 10 years, supported by 1.5 million employee volunteer hours, to help vulnerable communities, who are often hardest hit. With its dual focus on providing essential needs and fostering inclusion, the DBS Foundation’s initiatives seek to provide short-term relief for those in need, whilst equipping them with the know-how, tools, and opportunities to build towards a better future over time. The first wave of action since its upsized commitment involves implementing 15 new initiatives across its six key markets (Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, India and Indonesia) to uplift the lives and livelihoods of the vulnerable.
Photo courtesy of DBS Bank Taiwan
DBS Taiwan chief executive officer Ng Sier Han (黃思翰) said that as Taiwan’s largest foreign bank and the leader in sustainability, DBS continues to embed ESG in its core business, and is committed to local environmental sustainability and social welfare with the support of DBS Foundation. To further meet the essential needs of vulnerable communities and help them build a more financially resilient future, starting this year, DBS Foundation will inject a total of S$6 million and partner with Huashan Social Welfare Foundation and Money Trainer Financial Literacy Consulting to build a more inclusive society.
Huashan has long provided home-based services such as care visits, meal delivery, medical accompaniment, and home repair for disadvantaged elderly through more than 400 community care stations across Taiwan. DBS Foundation’s funding will support Huashan in expanding its network by setting up six new stations located in Keelung, New Taipei City, Hualien and Taitung.
DBS employee volunteers will also be activated to support elderly with dementia and disabilities by helping them to access the daily food and resources they need in their communities, strengthen their mental resilience by delivering seasoning greeting and companionship, and enjoy a dignified second half of their lives. This is expected to benefit about 5,900 seniors in three years.
Money Trainer Financial Literacy Consulting is dedicated to promoting financial literacy, helping vulnerable families to identify their financial issues, plan their finances, and ultimately escape poverty. DBS Foundation will work with them to build an AI-driven financial assessment model and platform. This will provide social workers and economically disadvantaged families with professional financial advice, solutions, and a comprehensive database of social welfare resources. This innovative partnership is expected to improve the financial health of 270,000 economically vulnerable individuals within three years, further enhancing overall financial literacy and economic resilience in society.
In addition, DBS Foundation announced the 2024 Grant awardees. 22 businesses for impact from 6 markets have been awarded S$4.5 million in grants. Among the winners, three Taiwan-based enterprises, Silver Gate, Duofu Holidays and DOMI EARTH, have also been recognized and will utilize the grants to expand their business scale and benefit more vulnerable communities.
The 2024 DBS Foundation Grant received over 1,500 applications from social enterprises and SMEs across Asia. In addition to using the grant to expand their operations and optimize their products and services, the winning companies will receive resources and guidance from DBS.
CAUTIOUS RECOVERY: While the manufacturing sector returned to growth amid the US-China trade truce, firms remain wary as uncertainty clouds the outlook, the CIER said The local manufacturing sector returned to expansion last month, as the official purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rose 2.1 points to 51.0, driven by a temporary easing in US-China trade tensions, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) said yesterday. The PMI gauges the health of the manufacturing industry, with readings above 50 indicating expansion and those below 50 signaling contraction. “Firms are not as pessimistic as they were in April, but they remain far from optimistic,” CIER president Lien Hsien-ming (連賢明) said at a news conference. The full impact of US tariff decisions is unlikely to become clear until later this month
Popular vape brands such as Geek Bar might get more expensive in the US — if you can find them at all. Shipments of vapes from China to the US ground to a near halt last month from a year ago, official data showed, hit by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs and a crackdown on unauthorized e-cigarettes in the world’s biggest market for smoking alternatives. That includes Geek Bar, a brand of flavored vapes that is not authorized to sell in the US, but which had been widely available due to porous import controls. One retailer, who asked not to be named, because
CHIP DUTIES: TSMC said it voiced its concerns to Washington about tariffs, telling the US commerce department that it wants ‘fair treatment’ to protect its competitiveness Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday reiterated robust business prospects for this year as strong artificial intelligence (AI) chip demand from Nvidia Corp and other customers would absorb the impacts of US tariffs. “The impact of tariffs would be indirect, as the custom tax is the importers’ responsibility, not the exporters,” TSMC chairman and chief executive officer C.C. Wei (魏哲家) said at the chipmaker’s annual shareholders’ meeting in Hsinchu City. TSMC’s business could be affected if people become reluctant to buy electronics due to inflated prices, Wei said. In addition, the chipmaker has voiced its concern to the US Department of Commerce
STILL LOADED: Last year’s richest person, Quanta Computer Inc chairman Barry Lam, dropped to second place despite an 8 percent increase in his wealth to US$12.6 billion Staff writer, with CNA Daniel Tsai (蔡明忠) and Richard Tsai (蔡明興), the brothers who run Fubon Group (富邦集團), topped the Forbes list of Taiwan’s 50 richest people this year, released on Wednesday in New York. The magazine said that a stronger New Taiwan dollar pushed the combined wealth of Taiwan’s 50 richest people up 13 percent, from US$174 billion to US$197 billion, with 36 of the people on the list seeing their wealth increase. That came as Taiwan’s economy grew 4.6 percent last year, its fastest pace in three years, driven by the strong performance of the semiconductor industry, the magazine said. The Tsai