DBS Bank India’s Vision for Effortless, Intelligent Banking
Artificial intelligence sits at the very core of DBS Bank India’s digital transformation journey, driving a fundamental shift in how customers experience banking. By embedding AI and automation across its operations, the bank has redefined what it means to deliver intuitive, seamless, and secure financial services in an increasingly digital-first world.
In an exclusive interaction with Express Computer, Ramesh Mallya, Chief Technology Officer at DBS Bank India, shares how the bank’s AI strategy goes far beyond process efficiency, focusing instead on creating intelligent, adaptive systems that anticipate customer needs and simplify complex decisions. From instant digital onboarding and AI-powered fraud detection to contextual insights that help customers manage their money more effectively, AI is woven into every stage of the customer journey. Mallya also discusses how DBS Bank India ensures that innovation is grounded in responsibility, with robust governance frameworks and ethical AI principles guiding every deployment. For DBS Bank India, success is not only measured in faster transactions or automation gains, but in the trust, transparency, and empowerment that intelligent banking can deliver to every customer.
How is DBS Bank India using AI and automation to make everyday banking interactions more intuitive and seamless for customers, and what metrics are used to measure success?
AI and automation are an integral part of our offering to customers, which enables us to make everyday banking intuitive and effortless. Embedded within platforms such as digibank, AI analyses customer behaviour, simplifies transactions, and provides actionable insights that help customers manage finances more effectively. For example, the digibank app uses AI-driven analytics to offer real-time spending insights, helping users make informed budgeting decisions. AI-powered identity verification using optical character recognition has also made onboarding faster and more secure, completing verification in minutes. Another example is Auto-Fin, an AI-powered underwriting solution that supports credit teams with rapid financial analysis and deeper insights. It enables faster and more consistent lending decisions while maintaining accuracy and improving risk assessment. This has enhanced productivity within our credit teams and strengthened lending outcomes for MSMEs. We have also introduced ERQ (ESG Risk Questionnaire), which performs structured ESG assessments for MSME clients. This allows us to integrate sustainability considerations into lending decisions, in line with our commitment to responsible financing. Success is measured through both customer and operational outcomes. We track customer satisfaction and net promoter scores to assess experience quality, while digital adoption rates, query resolution times, and transaction completion rates reflect efficiency gains.
Which operational pain points have seen the greatest efficiency gains through AI-driven automation, and what lessons have been learned from scaling these initiatives across markets?
DBS Bank India has seen significant efficiency gains in customer onboarding, verification, and back-office operations. Automating the Know Your Customer process through AI-powered document validation has reduced account activation times from days to minutes. In transaction monitoring, AI now analyses high-volume data to detect exceptions, streamline workflows, and reduce human error. Adapting models to local data ecosystems and regulatory contexts is essential to ensuring reliability. Equally, robust oversight mechanisms and a modular AI architecture enable scalable deployment without rebuilding from scratch. Another key learning has been the importance of talent development. DBS Bank India continues to invest in upskilling employees to strengthen AI literacy.
With fraud and cyber threats evolving rapidly, how is AI being used to predict threats proactively while balancing speed and accuracy?
AI plays a key role in proactively predicting and preventing fraud. Our systems analyse live transactional data, behavioural signals, device identifiers, and geolocation to detect unusual activity. To balance speed and accuracy, we use a layered defence model. Transactions are risk-scored rather than blocked outright. High-risk ones are flagged for immediate action, while lower-risk cases undergo offline review to avoid customer disruption. Behavioural biometrics further strengthen this approach by building individual activity baselines, making anomaly detection more precise. Beyond transaction monitoring, AI also scans network traffic and system logs to detect early signs of intrusion or data compromise. Continuous model learning ensures adaptability to new fraud patterns, helping protect both DBS Bank India and its customers with minimal friction.
Can you share an example of a proprietary AI capability that has improved customer engagement or employee productivity?
DBS GPT, our proprietary generative AI model, is one of the most transformative innovations at DBS Bank India. For employees, DBS GPT acts as a digital knowledge companion, sharing relevant templates, product information, and process guidance in real time. It is also used in training simulations to improve consistency and responsiveness in service delivery. This capability helps DBS Bank India drive smart automation, continuous learning, and greater efficiency across teams. For customers, our intelligent chat and virtual assistance within digibank support contextual conversations on account queries, banking services, and spending insights. This has improved self-service rates.
How is AI being used to provide hyper-personalised financial advice while ensuring privacy and compliance?
By analysing transaction patterns, spending habits, and savings goals, AI models help us generate contextual insights that help customers make smarter financial decisions. This personalisation is built on a foundation of trust and governance. Customers have full transparency and control over data usage, and all recommendations are generated using anonymised datasets. Strict data protection protocols, including encryption and limited access, safeguard customer information. All AI models undergo regular testing for fairness, accuracy, and inclusivity, ensuring that financial insights are unbiased and equitable. This approach reflects DBS Bank India’s deep commitment to ethical AI and the principles of PURE (Purposeful, Unsurprising, Respectful, and Explainable), ensuring every customer interaction is meaningful, transparent, and secure.
As featured in Express Computers
World’s Best Bank 2025, 2021, 2019, Euromoney
World’s Best Bank for Customer Experience 2025, Euromoney
World’s Best Bank for Corporate Responsibility 2025, 2023, Euromoney
Asia’s Safest Bank, 2009 – 2025, Global Finance
Best Bank in the World 2022, Global Finance
India’s Best International Bank 2021, Asiamoney
World’s Best Banks - #1 in India 2021, Forbes
World’s Safest Commercial Bank 2021, Global Finance
