DBS committed to joining forces with social enterprises through various support programmes amid Covid-19 pandemic | Bahasa

Indonesia, 06 Aug 2020 - Recognising the important role social enterprises (SEs) play in creating positive impacts in society, whether by hiring disadvantaged people or solving social problems, DBS has taken a slew of proactive measures to beef up support for this sector. The support includes access to grants, increased mentoring or training to facilitate business development, such as digital transformation courses and a business resource guide for SEs. In addition, Bank DBS Indonesia supports social enterprises through the Business Transformation and Improvement (BTI) Grant programme.

“We are aware that many social enterprises in Indonesia have been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, making it difficult for them to run their business and to pursue their social mission. Being a bank that is driven by a sustainable goal, we continue to innovate to become a bank that promotes economic, social and environmental sustainability. We hope that the various initiatives we undertake can inspire other parties to develop social enterprises that also provides a social impact including the environment,” said PT Bank DBS Indonesia President Director Paulus Sutisna.

DBS Foundation realised its commitment to joining forces with social enterprises through a special grant programme worth a total of SGD500,000 for social enterprises that are capable of developing and transforming businesses in Southeast Asia named DBS Foundation's BTI Grant programme. The programme aims to provide financial support for social enterprises so that they can maintain and create jobs as well as transform digitally in finding new sources of income to transform their business operations, which ultimately empowers them to continue serving the beneficiaries and the general public.

“We believe that social enterprises are the future of business. Therefore, DBS Foundation focuses on supporting and developing social enterprises through various educational programmes, business courses, and mentoring to empower social enterprises in Indonesia. Furthermore, Bank DBS Indonesia continues to maintain and advance the social enterprises industry amid the Covid-19 pandemic through the BTI Grant DBS Foundation,” said Head of Group Strategic Marketing & Communications, PT Bank DBS Indonesia, Mona Monika.

The funding programme is open for 60 social enterprises that are supported by DBS Foundation across Asia, and is an additional funding outside the annual Social Enterprise Grant (SE Grant). DBS Foundation has awarded more than SGD5 million in grants to more than 100 social enterprises in the last five years.

“Not only providing grants, Bank DBS supports us with its networks and skills to help us create a business system with guidance and a lot of amazing programmes we can attend to improve our capacity, both as organisations and individuals,” said Mycotech Co-founder Ronaldiaz Hartantyo.

Apart from funding, social enterprises also have the opportunity to take part in other DBS Foundation’s programmes, including access to free webinars that are jointly organised with Indonesia’s Social Enterprise Platform (PLUS) by inviting experts in the field of social business. The activity, titled "Social Enterprise Meet Up Online”, aims to educate and improve the skills of social enterprises. In addition, DBS is also committed to providing assistance and intensive training (skill-based volunteering) for social enterprises through a mentoring programme with DBS employees who are experts in their fields. The five-month programme underlines DBS Bank's commitment to providing support for social enterprises especially amid a pandemic. Since 2015 until today there have been more than 600 Social Enterprises in Indonesia that have participated in various activities which were initiated by DBS Foundation.

 

[END]

 

 

About DBS

DBS is a leading financial services group in Asia with a presence in 18 markets. Headquartered and listed in Singapore, DBS is in the three key Asian axes of growth: Greater China, Southeast Asia and South Asia. The bank’s “AA-” and “Aa1” credit ratings are among the highest in the world.

Recognised for its global leadership, DBS has been named “World’s Best Bank” by Euromoney, “Global Bank of the Year” by The Banker and “Best Bank in the World” by Global Finance. The bank is at the forefront of leveraging digital technology to shape the future of banking, having been named “World’s Best Digital Bank” by Euromoney. In addition, DBS has been accorded the “Safest Bank in Asia” award by Global Finance for 11 consecutive years from 2009 to 2019.

DBS provides a full range of services in consumer, SME and corporate banking. As a bank born and bred in Asia, DBS understands the intricacies of doing business in the region’s most dynamic markets. DBS is committed to building lasting relationships with customers, and positively impacting communities through supporting social enterprises, as it banks the Asian way. It has also established a SGD 50 million foundation to strengthen its corporate social responsibility efforts in Singapore and across Asia.

With its extensive network of operations in Asia and emphasis on engaging and empowering its staff, DBS presents exciting career opportunities. The bank acknowledges the passion, commitment and can-do spirit in all our 29,000 staff, representing over 40 nationalities. For more information, please visit www.dbs.com.