Karen Ngui of DBS Foundation discusses how financial literacy, AI, patient capital and partnerships can build resilient communities and scale social impact across India.
As technological disruption, demographic change and shifting employment patterns reshape economies, building resilience among vulnerable communities is becoming as important as expanding access to basic services. The challenge is no longer simply to provide relief, but to equip people with the financial literacy, digital capabilities, skills and institutional support needed to withstand change and improve their livelihoods over the long term.
For DBS Foundation, this approach is captured in the idea of moving “from relief to resilience”. Established in 2014 to champion social entrepreneurship in Asia, the Foundation has since broadened its mandate to work with businesses for impact, community organisations and government partners. At its 10th anniversary, DBS Bank committed up to SGD 1 billion over the following decade to strengthen its social-impact efforts. In India, the Foundation works with organisations including The/Nudge Institute and Haqdarshak on economic inclusion, last-mile access to government benefits and programmes aimed at strengthening vulnerable communities.
In conversation with Anoop Verma, Karen Ngui, Managing Director & Head, DBS Foundation, discusses why financial and digital literacy are becoming essential forms of resilience, how artificial intelligence could improve last-mile delivery, and why successful social interventions require patient capital, sustained partnerships and the ability to scale. She also argues that India’s CSR framework and rapidly evolving social-impact ecosystem offer lessons for other countries seeking to mobilise businesses as partners in addressing societal challenges.
Edited excerpts:
The idea of resilience can mean different things to different societies. How does the DBS Foundation define social and financial resilience? And what indicators do you use to determine whether a community can become more resilient?
Demographic shifts with people living longer and technological disruptions such as AI are reshaping societies. The ability to adapt and withstand change is really important for society. It is even harder for vulnerable communities, and which is why DBS is focused on helping them build social and financial resilience so that they can thrive.
Social resilience is about basic everyday needs. We believe in equipping people with basic everyday essentials and access to everyday needs, such that they can then start to think about how to improve their quality of life and their skill sets.
The other aspect is financial resilience, which is closely aligned with our strengths as a bank. We are equipped to teach financial planning, financial literacy and financial inclusion. It is about building skill sets and enabling pathways to employability, such that vulnerable communities are better able to look after themselves and be resilient.
You have spoken about technological disruption, demographic change and shifting employment patterns. Which of these pose the greatest risk to vulnerable communities? Where do you see the biggest opportunity for intervention by organisations such as DBS Foundation?
These changes are all interrelated. The focus is thus on where we are equipped to create the greatest impact and value.
This is where financial resilience comes in, because we are a bank. As AI advances and demographic patterns shift, it becomes increasingly important for societies, and for all of us, to have a basic level of financial literacy and digital literacy.
Technology is also important. The opportunity lies in how we leverage AI to become more effective and efficient in the way we go about the work that we do, while helping people build the skills and resilience needed to navigate a rapidly changing world.
DBS Foundation supports community partners and social enterprises that work in healthcare, education, financial inclusion and ageing. How do you determine where philanthropic capital can have the greatest impact, particularly when governments and markets are already active in these areas?
While it might seem that there are many areas that we are involved in, I would like to pull back a little and talk about DBS Foundation's charter. DBS Foundation was established in 2014 to champion social entrepreneurship in Asia. Over time, our mandate has broadened: we continue to nurture businesses for impact, while working with community and government partners to strengthen the social and financial resilience of vulnerable communities.
At the Foundation’s 10th anniversary, DBS Bank committed up to SGD 1 billion over the next 10 years, or about SGD 100 million a year. That commitment meant we needed to take a very strategic approach to how we create impact. At DBS Foundation, we champion strategic philanthropy. First, we don't just give back; we build forward. In India, for example, the question is how to reap the demographic dividend and equip younger people with the skill sets to thrive in life. This is where areas such as healthcare and education come in.
At the same time, India is a vast country with many rural communities. The question then becomes how to help people unlock the benefits that governments have already put in place. We partner with organisations such as Haqdarshak to help address that last-mile challenge.
The focus is on finding like-minded partners that are doing meaningful, impactful work that can drive systemic change that is sustainable and scalable. That's how we decide where to deploy our capital. We focus on interventions, and ensure that when a programme ends, the community or group we have worked with is in a stronger position to face the future with confidence.
In India, DBS Foundation is working with The/Nudge Institute to support the economic inclusion of around 85,000 low-income households in Gujarat and Jharkhand. What outcomes are you seeking through this partnership? What constitutes success beyond the number of households reached?
Our partnership with The/Nudge Institute is focused on helping the extreme poor and ultra-poor uplift their quality of life. These 85,000 households are being equipped with the skill sets to become more employable and improve their quality of life. It is about providing day-to-day relief, while also moving from relief to resilience.
That ethos of going from relief to resilience is important. Success is not measured only by access to better education, nutrition and opportunities. It is about whether that access translates into greater agency, with individuals in a better position to look after themselves and improve their quality of life. We want communities becoming more empowered to support one another, strengthen their resilience and help them face the future with greater confidence.
The Government of India has taken several steps to advance financial inclusion, including the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, which aims to provide every adult with access to a bank account. Despite this progress, challenges remain. What are the biggest barriers preventing low-income and rural households from using financial services effectively? How can digital and financial literacy help address these challenges?
Unlocking last-mile accessibility remains a challenge and we have worked with organisations such as Haqdarshak for almost nine years. They have grown from strength to strength in helping unlock the benefits that the Government of India has put in place for underprivileged communities.
There is still a gap in terms of reach and distribution. The other area is education and awareness. People need to understand how being digitally literate can help them and why opening a bank account matters. It's about understanding how it can help someone save money, run a small business and improve their quality of life.
Digital and financial literacy are important because they provide the context that helps people make use of the opportunities available to them. The more people understand how these tools can support their livelihoods and aspirations, the better positioned they are to benefit from them.
You also work with organisations such as Haqdarshak. What have you learned about the remaining gap between the availability of government benefits and citizens' ability to access them?
India is such a huge country, and it is hard to reach everyone. At the same time, it is wonderful to have organisations such as Haqdarshak, The/Nudge Institute, Sampark and our other partners that are focused on helping vulnerable communities across India. Scale and reach remain a challenge, but there is already a great deal of good work being done.
One of the important lessons has been the recognition that governments, businesses and social service agencies need to come together, cooperate and collaborate. Bridging the gap between the availability of benefits and citizens being able to access them requires that collective effort, along with organisations that understand local communities and can help improve reach and last-mile access.
You have spoken about reshaping the narrative on ageing. What does that mean in practical terms? How should governments and businesses rethink employment, financial security and social participation as Asian societies grow older?
Traditionally, India did not face ageing-related challenges because families were joint families, and older people were cared for by the younger generation. But as society develops and aspirations evolve, family structures are changing, and many older people are increasingly left to fend for themselves. The question then becomes: what can be done to help ensure they are able to live with dignity and security?
When we talk about ageing societies, it is important to focus on the word 'society' more than 'ageing', because this is about all stages of life. It is fundamentally a demographic shift. Part of reframing the narrative is helping people see the broader shift from younger to older populations, rather than viewing it solely as an issue of old age or aged care.
Aged care remains important, but aging is a life journey. Societies across Asia are ageing rapidly, and while India remains relatively young by demographic standards, these shifts are already underway. The way we think about life, work and how we live will need to evolve as populations change. This is what we mean by reframing the narrative. It is an all-of-society conversation driven by demographic shifts, not simply an aged-care issue.
The earlier people can start preparing for longer lives, the better. That means staying physically fit, but also financially fit, socially connected and emotionally well. It means having the resources, relationships and resilience to navigate different stages of life. Taking a more holistic view of ageing will help individuals and societies adapt more effectively to these demographic changes.
DBS Foundation has supported social enterprises and businesses for impact. What distinguishes a genuinely social impact enterprise from a promising pilot and what prevents more social enterprises from reaching commercial and social scale?
When the Foundation first started, in the first eight years or so, we made a very conscious effort to support social enterprises because we felt they are a powerful vehicle for creating change. They are businesses with a dual, and sometimes triple, bottom line, but always with both purpose and profit.
Over time, we also saw that there are other businesses doing their part for society. They may not call themselves social enterprises, but they are contributing in meaningful ways. We believe it is important for all businesses to recognise their role in society, because the healthier the society and community, the stronger the environment for businesses to thrive.
DBS Foundation is quite unique as a foundation. We support programmes with organisations such as The/Nudge Institute and Haqdarshak, while also supporting businesses for impact. We believe businesses need to be part of the solution by developing innovative ways to address society's challenges.
What distinguishes enterprises that achieve lasting impact is their ability to solve a real problem in a way that can be sustained and scaled. Many promising pilots demonstrate potential, but scaling often requires patient capital, strong execution capabilities, access to markets and talent, and the ability to measure and demonstrate outcomes. These can be difficult barriers for social enterprises to overcome.
We support businesses for impact because we believe it is important to develop solutions that deliver meaningful outcomes for society while building sustainable business models. We believe in doing well by doing good. There is a profit to be made because change is necessary, and when businesses can align purpose with commercial sustainability, they are able to create impact at scale.
Many socially impactful initiatives demonstrate good results at the pilot stage but struggle to expand. What kind of partnerships between governments, businesses, philanthropy and social enterprises are required to take successful interventions from thousands of beneficiaries to millions of people?
When a programme is first conceived, it is co-created. There needs to be a clear theory of change and clarity on the desired outputs and outcomes from the outset. Governments, businesses, philanthropy and social enterprises all need to have a shared commitment to the goals and a clear understanding of the role each partner plays. Without that sense of ownership, it is difficult to sustain momentum or scale impact.
The second consideration is time horizon. Many of these changes take time, and we cannot expect meaningful outcomes in three months, six months or even a year. We are often talking about human behaviour, livelihoods and long-term resilience. For successful interventions to reach millions of people, partners need to have the appetite to stay committed over two- or three-year periods, and sometimes longer. Deep, lasting change requires patience, consistency and the willingness to learn and adapt along the way.
Ultimately, programmes that scale successfully are those where partners are aligned on the outcomes, committed for the long term, and prepared to work together to achieve systemic change. Change needs to go deeper, and deeper change takes time.
India is a huge country. Whatever policies the government introduces can sometimes get lost because of the sheer scale of the population. What can India learn from other countries in terms of how social impact businesses are supported and managed? What kinds of incentives, assistance or guidance have been effective elsewhere? What lessons can we learn from other countries?
I think the question is: what lessons can other countries learn from India? The Indian government has had the foresight to introduce the requirement for companies to set aside 2% of their profits for CSR, recognising that businesses can be part of the solution to society's challenges. As a result, the social impact sector in India is very well developed. Given the country's scale and the ecosystem that has evolved around this requirement, there is a great deal that others can learn from India's approach.
Often when I meet and speak with partners, there is so much that we learn from them. Across India, you see organisations developing innovative, practical solutions to address complex social challenges, often at a scale that is difficult to replicate elsewhere. That said, because India is such a large and diverse country. It is important for organisations to have a clear focus, both in terms of the issues they address and the geographies they serve. Focus helps organisations build expertise, demonstrate impact and scale more effectively, rather than spreading resources too thinly.
India is a very technologically savvy country. The adoption of digital tools and platforms creates significant opportunities to reach more people, improve access and deliver services more efficiently. Combined with strong partnerships and a vibrant social impact ecosystem, this gives India a unique advantage in developing and scaling solutions that can improve lives at scale.
So then how do you leverage AI and technology to help with some of these scale, reach and distribution issues?
The AI playbook is still unfolding and changing every day. But it is something we should embrace and explore thoughtfully. When we talk about scale, reach and distribution, technology and AI can play an important role in helping us extend access to people who might otherwise be left out. Whether it is banking, digital literacy, healthcare, education or access to government services, technology is increasingly reaching people through devices they already use, such as mobile phones.
The question is how we can harness these tools to strengthen last-mile delivery. Can AI help people better understand financial products? Can it make information more accessible, personalised and available in local languages? Can it help connect individuals to services, benefits or opportunities more efficiently?
We are still learning what is possible, but the opportunity is significant. Used responsibly, AI and technology can help lower barriers to access, improve delivery and extend the reach of programmes to more people. Ultimately, the goal is to use technology to ensure that support reaches the people who need it most.
The kind of work that the DBS Foundation is doing usually requires significant support. Are you receiving sufficient support? Do you think any reforms are required to facilitate greater participation by private foundations in delivering social services, advice and other forms of support?
The sector as a whole continues to demonstrate the important role that foundations can play in addressing societal challenges. The real work involves looking at programmes over a longer time horizon and supporting change in a structured and sustainable way.
Social impact organisations need to remain innovative, adopt new technologies and build stronger capabilities. As AI and digital tools become more important, we need to think about how we can help these organisations become more technologically advanced and better equipped to increase their impact.
Ultimately, lasting impact requires long-term commitment, strong partnerships and a willingness to invest beyond funding alone. The opportunity ahead lies in helping successful solutions achieve greater scale, reach and sustainability so that they can improve more lives over time.
As featured on ET Government
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 – 2026, 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
