Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited (OCBC, SGX: O39) is back on the radar of global investors as its share price trades just below all‑time highs, supported by robust 2025 earnings, surging wealth management income and a tech‑heavy payments strategy.
As of early afternoon on 10 December 2025, OCBC is trading around S$18.80, with a previous close of S$18.79, within a 52‑week range of S$14.35 to S$19.00. That puts the stock roughly 13% higher than a year ago and only a shade below its recent record levels. [1]
Below is a full rundown of the latest price action, company news, analyst forecasts and risks as of 10 December 2025.
OCBC share price today (10 December 2025)
- Current price: about S$18.80 intraday on the Singapore Exchange, after closing at S$18.79 on 9 December. [2]
- 52‑week range:S$14.35 – S$19.00, with the upper end reached in early December. [3]
- Market capitalisation: roughly S$85 billion, making OCBC one of the largest components of the Straits Times Index (STI). [4]
- Valuation snapshot: trailing P/E around 11.7x and reported headline dividend yield about 4.4%, based on “regular” dividends only. [5]
Over the past several weeks, OCBC has repeatedly printed new record highs, with intraday prices approaching S$19 and closing highs around S$18.95–S$18.97 as investors rotated into Singapore bank stocks. [6]
Local media note that since early November, OCBC has outperformed both the STI and rival DBS after lagging earlier in the year, helped by growing enthusiasm for its wealth franchise and capital‑return story. [7]
Q3 2025 results: profits resilient, margins softer
OCBC’s latest leg higher is anchored in a solid set of third‑quarter 2025 numbers released in early November.
Headline figures
According to the bank’s Q3 2025 results release and filings:
- Q3 2025 net profit:S$1.98 billion – flat year‑on‑year but up 9% quarter‑on‑quarter, and ahead of analyst estimates. [8]
- 9M 2025 net profit:S$5.68 billion, only slightly below the prior year’s record pace, despite a tougher interest‑rate backdrop. [9]
- Revenue (Q3 2025): around S$3.7 billion, up about 7% quarter‑on‑quarter and roughly flat year‑on‑year. [10]
Net interest margin under pressure
The main headwind was narrower lending margins:
- Net interest margin (NIM) fell to about 1.84% in Q3 2025, from 2.18% a year earlier, as loans repriced down faster than deposit costs. [11]
- Net interest income declined year‑on‑year, and management now expects 2025 net interest income to fall by mid‑ to high‑single‑digit percentages versus 2024. [12]
OCBC has also narrowed its full‑year 2025 NIM guidance to about 1.90%, down from an earlier 1.90–1.95% range, reflecting the global transition into a lower‑rate environment. [13]
Non‑interest income and wealth management: the bright spots
Where OCBC really shone was outside traditional lending:
- Non‑interest income hit a record in Q3 2025, rising roughly 24% quarter‑on‑quarter on the back of strong fees, trading and insurance contributions. [14]
- Fee income climbed 18% quarter‑on‑quarter, driven by wealth management activity, fund management, brokerage and trade‑related fees. [15]
- OCBC’s Group wealth management income reached about S$1.63 billion in Q3 and accounted for roughly 43% of total group income, up from the mid‑30s a year earlier. [16]
In short, flat overall earnings with weaker margins were rescued by a very powerful fee‑ and wealth‑driven engine – a pattern investors are increasingly comfortable with across the Singapore banks.
Asset quality and capital remain strong
Despite macro worries, credit quality has held up:
- Non‑performing loan (NPL) ratio stayed at 0.9%, unchanged and low by regional standards. [17]
- Credit costs were just 16 basis points (annualised) for Q3, reflecting limited new problem loans. [18]
- Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio was 16.9% on a transitional basis and 15.0% fully phased‑in under MAS’ final Basel III reforms, giving OCBC a sizeable capital buffer for growth and capital returns. [19]
Wealth management and Bank of Singapore: the key growth engine
OCBC’s investment case is increasingly anchored in its multi‑engine model: traditional commercial and consumer banking, private banking, and insurance.
Bank of Singapore: aiming for top‑five in Asia
Bank of Singapore (BOS), OCBC’s private‑banking arm, is expanding rapidly:
- Assets under management (AUM) have grown nearly 20% since early 2023 to more than US$145 billion as of Q3 2025. [20]
- BOS now employs about 500 relationship managers and plans to hire aggressively again in 2026. [21]
- Management’s goal is to rank among Asia’s top five private banks within about five years, with Hong Kong and Dubai highlighted as key growth hubs. [22]
This wealth push is a big reason why OCBC’s wealth income now contributes more than 40% of group income, making the bank significantly more fee‑driven than in the past. [23]
Great Eastern: failed delisting, ongoing profit pillar
OCBC also owns 93.7% of Great Eastern Holdings, its insurance subsidiary. In July 2025, minority shareholders blocked a plan to delist Great Eastern, rejecting OCBC’s roughly S$900 million offer for the remaining 6.28% stake. [24]
Reuters reports that Great Eastern has contributed an average of about S$700 million of profit per year to OCBC over the past decade, making it a crucial earnings pillar even though market volatility can swing reported numbers. [25]
The failed delisting:
- Delays full integration benefits,
- But also spares OCBC a large upfront cash outlay, preserving capital for dividends, buybacks and organic growth.
Digital payments and “pay like a local” in China
One of the more eye‑catching pieces of recent news is OCBC’s QR‑payments expansion.
WeChat Pay / Weixin Pay in China
On 1 December 2025, OCBC announced that its Singapore mobile banking app will become the first from a Singapore bank that can scan and pay all major merchant QR codes in mainland China. [26]
Key points:
- OCBC customers will be able to scan Weixin Pay (WeChat Pay) merchant QR codes via the OCBC app by Q1 2026, on top of existing support for Alipay+ and UnionPay. [27]
- Payments will be debited directly from Singapore‑dollar bank accounts at competitive FX rates, with no extra merchant fees charged by OCBC. [28]
- OCBC’s Scan & Pay feature already connects to QR networks in dozens of markets worldwide and is seeing double‑digit growth in transaction volumes and a strong rise in active users. [29]
The bank has also expanded support for eight major digital wallets across Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam, enabling cross‑border transfers straight into wallets rather than bank accounts – a clear play at the 1.6‑million‑strong foreign‑worker population in Singapore. [30]
From a shareholder’s point of view, these initiatives are primarily about:
- Growing fee income from cross‑border payments and FX;
- Strengthening customer stickiness, by making the OCBC app a default travel/remittance wallet;
- Deepening OCBC’s data and ecosystem advantages across Asia.
Blockchain‑based U.S. dollar funding
In August 2025, OCBC launched a US$1 billion digital U.S. commercial paper programme, using blockchain technology and J.P. Morgan’s Digital Debt Service to issue tokenised commercial paper to institutional investors. [31]
- The new programme complements OCBC’s traditional US$25 billion commercial paper shelf and aims to broaden and cheapen U.S. dollar funding. [32]
Combined with its QR‑payments initiatives, this paints a picture of a bank that is leaning hard into “real” fintech, not just mobile apps with a new coat of paint.
New investments: low‑carbon steel as an ESG angle
OCBC is also deploying capital into transition‑economy projects:
- A mezzanine‑capital unit of the bank has taken an equity stake in a hot briquetted iron (HBI) plant tied to a S$1.5 billion low‑carbon steel project by a Singapore‑based producer. [33]
The investment supports lower‑emission steelmaking and fits squarely into the bank’s sustainable‑finance ambitions, while potentially opening new corporate‑banking and treasury relationships around the project.
Leadership, strategy and restructuring
CEO transition: Tan Teck Long to take over in 2026
OCBC has already signalled its next leadership chapter:
- Tan Teck Long, currently Head of Global Wholesale Banking and Deputy CEO, will become Group CEO on 1 January 2026, succeeding Helen Wong, who retires on 31 December 2025 but stays on in key China‑related roles. [34]
Tan is a veteran banker with prior experience as Chief Risk Officer at DBS; his appointment is widely seen as a continuity move that nonetheless emphasises wholesale banking and regional growth.
New chief strategy & transformation officer
In November 2025, OCBC appointed Melvyn Low as Group Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer, on top of his role leading global transaction banking. Under his leadership, transaction‑banking revenues have doubled over five years, and OCBC has rolled out innovations like a blockchain‑based conditional payments system and cross‑border payment links between Singapore and Thailand. [35]
The combination of Tan and Low at the top suggests a strategy centred on:
- Expanding regional wealth and transaction banking;
- Accelerating digital and cross‑border payment capabilities;
- Keeping a conservative balance sheet to support sustained capital returns.
Integrating securities units into Global Markets
In May 2025, OCBC said it would fold three securities units in Singapore, Hong Kong and Indonesia into its Global Markets division from July 2025. [36]
The move aims to:
- Streamline its equities and securities operations across Asia;
- Lower costs and encourage cross‑selling;
- Strengthen positioning as Singapore attempts to revitalise its stock market.
Capital return: dividends, specials and buybacks
For many investors, OCBC stock is primarily a dividend and capital‑return story.
2024 dividends and the S$2.5 billion capital‑return plan
For FY2024, OCBC reported record net profit of S$7.59 billion and:
- Proposed a final ordinary dividend of 41 cents per share,
- On top of earlier payouts, bringing total ordinary dividend to 85 cents per share,
- Plus a 16‑cent special dividend, for total DPS of S$1.01, representing about 60% of net profit. [37]
At today’s share price around S$18.8–18.8x, that S$1.01 equates to a back‑of‑the‑envelope yield in the mid‑5% range, while the 85‑cent “regular” dividend alone implies roughly 4.5%.
In February 2025, OCBC unveiled a S$2.5 billion capital‑return framework for FY2024–FY2025, comprising: [38]
- An ordinary dividend payout ratio of 50%;
- Plus a 10% “top‑up” via special dividends in each of FY2024 and FY2025;
- With the remainder of the S$2.5 billion delivered via share buybacks.
Reuters reports that management is committed to a total payout ratio of about 60% (ordinary + specials + buybacks) for FY2024 and FY2025 combined. [39]
2025 interim dividend
For the first half of 2025, OCBC:
- Declared an interim ordinary dividend of 41 cents per share,
- Equal to a 50% payout of 1H 2025 net profit, and slightly below the 44‑cent interim dividend for 2024. [40]
The bank has reiterated that it remains committed to its S$2.5 billion capital‑return plan, which still leaves room for more specials or buybacks into 2026, depending on earnings and regulatory capital needs. [41]
Analysts at several brokerages now project an ordinary DPS around 82–85 cents in 2025, with the possibility of further specials in 2026 if excess capital remains. [42]
Analyst sentiment, targets and technicals
Consensus price targets
Fresh consensus numbers as of 10 December 2025 show:
- Growbeansprout / SGX consensus: average 12‑month target price of ~S$19.01, implying about 1% upside from current levels. [43]
- SGInvestors’ STI‑constituent compilation: average target around S$19.25, or roughly 2–3% upside, with most broker ratings in the Buy/Outperform/Overweight bucket and a minority of neutrals. [44]
- Individual broker moves include DBS Group Research raising its OCBC target to S$19.80, and multiple houses highlighting the dividend policy as a potential re‑rating catalyst. [45]
Separately, a recent valuation piece on Yahoo Finance argued that OCBC might still trade at a meaningful discount to intrinsic value, depending on the model used, although such deep‑value arguments are no longer consensus. [46]
Qualitative analyst views
Recent commentary from research houses and the financial press tends to emphasise:
- Wealth outperformance and Great Eastern’s contribution as key supports for earnings quality; [47]
- “Option value” of higher dividends beyond 2025, given OCBC’s strong capital ratios and limited appetite for major M&A; [48]
- The bank’s valuation discount to DBS on price‑to‑book, despite a broadly comparable return profile and a more diversified mix of banking, wealth and insurance. [49]
Some houses have upgraded their ratings to “Buy” or “Overweight” after Q3, while others remain neutral on the grounds that OCBC is now trading near fair value, with the investment case shifting from deep value to “quality income with moderate growth”. [50]
Technical picture
Short‑term technical indicators still look constructive:
- TipRanks data show OCBC’s price trading comfortably above its 50‑day and 200‑day moving averages, with most moving‑average signals flashing “Buy” as of early December. [51]
With the share price hovering just below its 52‑week high and price‑to‑book around 1.45x, OCBC no longer looks cheap on historical metrics – but nor does it appear stretched relative to quality peers and its own earnings power. [52]
Macro backdrop and 2026 outlook
OCBC’s own investment‑research arm has turned broadly constructive on risk assets in 2026, expecting:
- Further U.S. Federal Reserve rate cuts into 2026;
- Improving earnings growth in North Asian equities;
- A bottoming in return on equity for China and related markets. [53]
For the bank itself, guidance and external forecasts point to:
- Mid‑single‑digit loan growth in 2025 and likely into 2026, down from an 8% surge in 2024; [54]
- Structural NIM compression as the global rate cycle turns, partially offset by balance‑sheet growth; [55]
- Continued emphasis on wealth, insurance and transaction banking to keep earnings near record levels despite lower margins. [56]
Consensus scenario: modest share‑price upside plus mid‑4% to mid‑5% dividend yields, giving the potential for mid‑ to high‑single‑digit total returns if credit quality stays benign and capital‑return plans are delivered.
Key risks investors are watching
Even with the stock near record highs, several risks remain front of mind:
- Lower‑for‑longer rates
Further global rate cuts into 2026 could push NIM below current guidance if deposit competition intensifies. - Slower loan growth
A sharper‑than‑expected slowdown in Asia could curb loan growth and dampen both interest and fee income. [57] - Reliance on market‑sensitive wealth and insurance income
A serious risk‑off episode in Asian markets would likely hurt wealth‑management fees and Great Eastern’s contribution. - Execution and regulatory risk in China and cross‑border payments
Deeper integration with Chinese QR‑payment ecosystems exposes OCBC to regulatory and competitive pressures in a crowded space. [58] - Leadership transition
2026 will be the first full year for incoming CEO Tan Teck Long; investors will watch closely how he balances growth, risk and capital returns through a shifting rate cycle. [59] - Valuation at the richer end of OCBC’s history
With price‑to‑book above long‑term averages and expectations already high, any disappointment on earnings or dividends could trigger a sharper pullback.
Bottom line on OCBC stock as of 10 December 2025
Putting it all together, OCBC (SGX: O39) today looks like:
- A high‑quality, well‑capitalised Singapore bank with strong wealth and insurance engines;
- Offering a solid dividend stream backed by a formal capital‑return framework targeting about 60% of earnings, at a current yield generally somewhere in the mid‑4% to mid‑5% range depending on how you treat special dividends;
- Trading close to consensus fair value on most models, with analysts expecting modest price upside plus attractive income rather than explosive growth;
- Leaning into genuinely strategic digital initiatives (QR payments, blockchain funding) and a regional wealth strategy that could keep non‑interest income growing faster than traditional lending over the next several years.
For readers following OCBC on Google News and Discover today, the stock looks less like a speculative trade and more like a dividend‑rich, regionally diversified financial franchise whose 2026 story will be defined by leadership transition, digital execution and how gently the global rate cycle lands.
References
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