Starting 5 October 2026, you will be able to buy DBS shares 10 at a time instead of the usual 100.
Ten other stocks are joining it in SGX’s first wave of smaller board lots.
While a lower entry price makes trading more accessible, cheaper to buy does not necessarily mean better to own.
Here is a closer look at four of these 11 counters, along with what their latest financial results reveal about their dividends.
What changes on 5 October?
A board lot is the smallest number of shares you can trade in one go on the Singapore Exchange (SGX).
For most counters today, that number is 100.
Under the new rules, eligible stocks priced above S$10 and up to S$100 will trade in lots of 10.
Meanwhile, shares priced above S$100 will drop to single-share lots.
Any stock trading at S$10 or below will retain its current lot size.
Besides the four below, the first batch includes Great Eastern Holdings (SGX: G07), Jardine Cycle & Carriage (SGX: C07), Jardine Matheson (SGX: J36), Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (SGX: O39), Prudential (SGX: K6S), United Overseas Bank (SGX: U11) and Venture Corporation (SGX: V03).
SGX will review lot sizes every quarter.
If you already hold these shares, your existing holdings remain unchanged.
However, keep in mind that SGX will purge all resting orders for these counters at the close of the final trading day before 5 October, so you will need to re-enter them.
Can SGX keep raising its dividend?
Singapore Exchange Limited (SGX: S68) runs Singapore’s stock market and a multi-asset exchange, and it also happens to be on its own list of first-batch counters.
For the financial year ended 30 June 2026 (FY2026), net revenue grew 13.9% year on year (YoY) to S$1.5 billion.
Equities–Cash revenue led the charge, rising 28.1% to S$502.9 million as securities daily average traded value expanded by 34.9%.
A S$53.4 million goodwill impairment held net profit growth to 7.8%, bringing the total to S$698.4 million.
Strip that out, along with weaker investment gains, and adjusted net profit rose 24.6% to S$759.5 million.
SGX clearly maintains the cash flow required to support its payouts.
It generated S$870.7 million in operating cash flow while holding S$1.8 billion in cash against S$628.2 million in borrowings.
For FY2026, the ordinary dividend came to S$0.445 per share, complemented by a one-off dividend of S$0.125 per share.
Looking ahead, management has guided for quarterly dividend increases of 0.25 cents through FY2028.
How is DBS growing as rates fall?
DBS Group Holdings Ltd (SGX: D05), Singapore’s largest lender, has had to navigate falling interest rates that are putting pressure on its lending margins.
In the second quarter of 2026 (2Q2026), the net interest margin narrowed by 18 basis points to 1.87%, leading to a 2% YoY dip in net interest income to S$3.6 billion.
Fortunately, wealth management more than offset the shortfall.
Wealth management fees jumped 42% to S$919 million, pushing total non-interest income up 21% to S$2.5 billion.
Total income grew 6% to S$6.1 billion – marking the first time DBS has crossed the S$6 billion threshold in a quarter.
Net profit rose 9% to S$3.1 billion, delivering a healthy return on equity (ROE) of 17.9%.
DBS declared an ordinary interim dividend of S$0.66 per share alongside a capital return dividend of S$0.15 per share.
What supports Haw Par’s dividend?
Haw Par Corporation (SGX: H02) derives most of its operational revenue from its iconic Tiger Balm brand, though the bulk of its underlying profit comes from substantial equity stakes in UOB and UOL Group (SGX: U14).
Both slowed in the first half of 2026 (1H2026).
Revenue fell 8.2% YoY to S$115.9 million as consumer sentiment softened, while dividend income from its investments dropped to S$73.2 million from S$102.3 million.
Consequently, net profit slid 25.2% to S$107.9 million.
Because free cash flow underpins dividend durability, investors should note that Haw Par’s thinned to S$20.8 million from S$26.3 million.
However, the balance sheet tells a reassuringly conservative story: Haw Par held S$669.1 million in cash and S$212.3 million in debt securities against just S$52.6 million in total borrowings.
Haw Par declared an interim dividend of S$0.20 per share, matching last year’s payout.
It did not declare a special dividend for FY2025, following a S$1.00 special dividend distributed for FY2024.
What should Keppel shareholders watch?
Keppel Ltd (SGX: BN4) is a Singapore-headquartered global asset manager and operator.
In 1H2026, revenue grew 24.6% YoY to S$3.8 billion.
However, a S$375 million loss within its non-core portfolio dragged overall net profit down 59.0% to S$154.7 million.
Excluding that non-core drag, net profit actually rose 25% to S$530 million.
Cash flow is the weaker spot.
Operating cash flow dropped to S$96.8 million from S$219.4 million due to higher working capital requirements, placing greater emphasis on asset sales.
Keppel has announced roughly S$1.7 billion in asset monetisation so far this year, against a full-year target of S$2 billion to S$3 billion.
It held S$2.2 billion in cash against S$11.3 billion in borrowings.
Keppel declared an interim dividend of S$0.15 per share, unchanged from a year ago.
Watch operating cash flow and the pace of asset sales.
Get Smart: Buy the business, not the lot size
Buying one lot of a S$32 stock used to require an upfront capital outlay of S$3,200.
Under the revised trading rules, S$320 is all you need to get started.
That said, a smaller entry price does not guarantee a safer dividend payout.
Before taking a position, ask yourself where next year’s dividend will come from, and look for clear answers within the latest financial results.
If the fundamental numbers hold up, a smaller lot size simply works in your favour.
If they do not, you have found a cheaper way into the same risk.
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Disclosure: Joanna Sng owns shares of SGX, DBS, UOB, and Venture.
