As a panellist at last week's Sea Asia Conference, DBS Group chief executive Piyush Gupta preached the need for caution when it came to financing shipping assets.

Gupta now appears to look at shipping from the viewpoint of a shipowner, perhaps because, as he describes himself, he is the reluctant owner of offshore assets.

“You have to deal with people who have deep pockets and are not overstretched,” he told conference delegates.