DBS chief executive dies of cancer: Bank

SINGAPORE: The chief executive of DBS Group Holdings, Richard Stanley, died Saturday after being diagnosed with leukemia in January, the bank said.

"His immediate family was by his side as he slipped away peacefully," DBS said in a brief statement.

"All of us at the bank are deeply saddened. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family during this time of bereavement."

The bank said in a statement late Friday that Stanley, 48, was in critical care after his condition worsened unexpectedly.

"Unfortunately the unpredictability of the disease has led to severe complications due to infection," it said in the earlier statement.

DBS, the largest bank in Southeast Asia by assets, announced in January that Stanley had developed leukemia and would take three to six months' leave for medical treatment.

Chairman Koh Boon Hwee has been overseeing management in his absence.

Stanley, a US citizen who formerly headed Citigroup's China operations, joined DBS in May last year. He had spent the previous 18 years of his banking career in Asia.