DBS Group Holdings chairman Peter Seah's total pay package shot up last year while chief executive Piyush Gupta's dipped slightly, as the bank posted record earnings in 2013.

Mr Seah earned $1.84 million in total last year, a 84 per cent jump from the $999,284 he got in 2012, according to DBS' 2013 annual report released on Tuesday.

Of that amount, $1.35 million was his retainer fee as chairman, which was more than twice his $500,000 retainer fee in 2012.

Mr Gupta's pay package decreased slightly from $9.33 million in 2012 to $9.2 million last year.

His salary remained the same at $1.2 million, but his cash bonus dipped slightly.

DBS said in the report that the increase in Mr Seah's chairman retainer fee was in view of the amount of time he spends on DBS matters, the "significant and strategic value of his input and guidance to management" and the group's strong performance under his leadership in the last three years.

Another factor was the board chairman's fee at comparable financial institutions.

"The last time the chairman's remuneration was revised was in 2011," a DBS spokesman said on Tuesday.

She added that Mr Gupta's pay was "based on a balanced scorecard approach" which took into account various aspects of the bank's business, such as customer satisfaction and shareholder returns.

DBS's full-year net profit reached a record $3.5 billion last year excluding one-off items, a 4 per cent improvement over the previous year.