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DBS, Samsung Securities Sign Wealth Management Tie-Up

Editorial Staff

3 July 2026

DBS and Samsung Securities have agreed to build a strategic partnership in wealth management.

The two firms signed a memorandum of understanding today, described as a first-of-its-kind, bringing together ' position in Korea's capital markets. The MoU is a precursor to a fuller strategic partnership agreement, with detailed terms still to be worked out.

The tie-up lands at a moment when South Korea's wealthy investor base has swelled on the back of the AI-driven rally in technology stocks, with gains in Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix shares generating fresh fortunes for domestic investors. According to the 2025 Korea Wealth Report, published by KB Financial Group's research arm on 14 December 2025, the number of South Koreans holding 1 billion won ($676,818) or more in financial assets rose over 3 per cent last year to nearly 480,000. That figure has more than tripled from 130,000 when the survey began in 2011, a compound annual growth rate of 9.7 per cent – a dynamic likely to sharpen demand for the kind of cross-border investment access the partnership promises. 

Lenders across the region are increasingly targeting wealth management as a way of diversifying revenue away from more traditional banking lines.

Under the MoU, the two firms will explore four areas of collaboration. DBS clients will be given access to Korean market solutions offered by Samsung Securities, while Samsung Securities' clients will gain entry to DBS's multi-asset global wealth platform. The pair also plan to develop joint advisory services for clients with cross-border wealth needs, and to collaborate on knowledge sharing and innovation, including artificial intelligence.

Tan Su Shan, DBS's CEO, said that Asia was fast becoming the world's wealth engine, with clients increasingly wanting to manage assets seamlessly across markets. She said DBS was pleased to partner a like-minded institution that shared its client-first approach, adding that the tie-up would give clients in both markets investment opportunities that few competitors could match across Asia and beyond. 

Tan indicated that wealth management was just a starting point, with DBS hoping to extend the "One Bank" model over time to serve clients' business needs as well as their wealth.

Park Jong-moon, president and CEO of Samsung Securities, said the partnership marked an important milestone in connecting Korean investors to global markets. He said that pairing the firm's strength in Korea's capital markets with DBS's regional and global wealth platform would provide a more connected and differentiated wealth experience to the two offer clients and reinforce Korea's position within Asia's wealth ecosystem.  

The move is the latest sign of banks and brokerages in the region seeking scale through partnership rather than acquisition, as they compete for a share of Asia's expanding pool of high net worth wealth.

WealthBriefingAsia has contacted DBS and Samsung Securities to explore more details of the strategy.