OCBC Bank chief warns South China Sea ruling could be ‘potential flashpoint for the region’
Samuel Tsien also says it is premature to write-off Britain’s influence as a global economic force, because of Brexit
Singapore’s most prolific cross-border acquirer of banking and financial businesses says he is considering his business strategies more carefully, as Asia has come to a crossroads follow The Hague’s ruling over its territorial rights in the South China Sea.
Samuel Tsien, the group chief executive officer OCBC Bank, said: “2016 started off eventful, and continues to be so... The disagreements over the South China Sea continue to be a potential flashpoint for the region.”
“While we keep an eagle’s eye over the financial markets, the regional socio-political events will have significant spill-over effects on the economic front,” he warned.
“These developments require us to consider, or re-consider, our business model carefully.
“We will need to plan, strategise and carefully pick our path forward.”
Tsien counted four other events so far this year have shaken the world’s financial markets: the two trading halts of the Chinese equity markets at the start of the year, the crash in crude prices, the Bank of Japan’s negative interest rate policy, and the shockwaves unleashed in the foreign exchange and equity markets caused by the unexpected Brexit vote.