Singapore Bank Hiring in China

Asia hiring may be muted, but it certainly isn't dead.

Singapore-based bank DBS Group Holdings Ltd. will grow its employee base in China by 25%, or 400 employees, in 2012, according to Melvin Teo, chief executive of DBS in China. The company currently employs 1,600 people in 25 Chinese cities. It's planning to double its number of offices by 2013.

"We are now well-positioned to further accelerate growth and deepen our footprint in China," Teo said at a conference in Shanghai. The bank's net profit in China doubled to more than 500 million yuan last year.

Although banks such as UBS, Nomura and Bank of America are reducing headcount in the region, as a small bank, DBS "can still find opportunities in the niches of Asia that we want to grow," the firm's chief executive Piyush Gupta said.

Time to get working on that Mandarin.

Enticing Traders (Reuters)

Now that banks are shutting down their proprietary trading operations, smaller commodity firms are luring traders with promises of bonuses that are out of government reach.

Bring on the Boutiques (Lazard)

Mark Renton, former vice chairman of global energy at Citigroup, has joined Lazard as managing director, financial advisory, to focus on international oil and gas.

Down in Asia (Reuters)

Pay across the board at investment banks in Asia is down 40% from last year, recruiters say.

Take a Nap (Health Blog)

If you sleep in on the weekend, you're not getting enough sleep during the week. This and other takeaways in WSJ's chat about the sleep habits of Americans.

Mo Meetings, Mo Problems (WSJ)

Looking for your CEO? Chances are he or she is in a meeting. One study finds that top executives spend 18 hours out of every 55-hour-workweek chatting it up in a conference room or an office.

Man's Best Friend (WSJ)

One asset manager at AIG is showing Oscar (full name: Oscar the Grouch), his Greater Swiss Mountain dog, at this week's Westminster Kennel Club dog show. We hope a representative from Deutsche Bank is showing up with a dachshund.

Buzz Around the Office

Liquid Choreography (YouTube)

Dubai fountains commemorate the late Whitney Houston.

List of the Day: Office Romances

Perhaps last night's Valentine's Day dinner didn't go as planned? If you're planning to break up with your paramour from work, be careful how you do it.

1. Don't break up with the person at the office.

2. Make clear you want to stay friends professionally.

3. End as amiably as possible so they don't badmouth you and ruin your career.

(Source: Glassdoor.com)