Singapore's biggest bank DBS Group Holdings asked 300 staff to leave its head office in the financial district on Wednesday and work from home as a precautionary measure after an employee tested positive for coronavirus.
Singapore has reported 50 coronavirus cases, one of the highest tallies outside China, and there is mounting evidence of local transmission. The government has been trying to calm nerves after it raised the virus alert level last week, sparking panic buying of essentials such as rice and toilet paper.
"DBS confirms today that one employee has been infected with the novel coronavirus," it said in a statement. DBS said an employee was tested on Feb. 11 and the bank was informed of the confirmation of coronavirus on Wednesday morning.
As of noon, the bank asked all staff on the floor where the infected person worked at its headquarters at the Marina Bay Financial Center (MBFC) to vacate the premises.
---Reuters, Singapore