An executive interview with KBank HCMC’s representatives revealed the resilient growth of Vietnam economy will make the country an economic powerhouse in Southeast Asia.
Mr. Pattarapong and Mr. Chatuporn in the opening event of KBank in HCMC
Mr. Pattarapong Kanhasuwan – Executive Vice President- KBank: “the world faces inflation at times, but we see long-term potential in the Vietnam market.”
On 11th July 2022, the Deputy Prime Minister Le Minh Khai signed the Decree 86/NQ-CP of the Government on the safe development of the capital market. And the perspective of KBank?
We really appreciate the Vietnamese government’s effort and welcome the signed Decree to make the capital market safer for all stakeholders. We, as a bank, always focus on the safety of the capital market and proactively manages the risks. We also think that it should be a cooperation of the whole banking system and the government to keep the capital market safer.
How does “tightening” the credit room for fear of inflation affect KBank as a newcomer in the market?
We think that all economies in the world face inflation at times. Normally, the economy goes up and down, but we see long-term potential in the Vietnam market.
Vietnam is the only ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) country that has enjoyed positive economic growth despite the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Its economy has remained resilient, expanding by 2.9 percent in 2020—one of the highest growth rates in the world—and growth is projected to be 7 percent in 2022, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment.
Agreed with Mr. Pattarapong, Mr. Chatuporn Boozaya-angool – General Director of KBank HCMX Branch says Vietnam’s significant contribution to the region’s economic growth and its ability to continue its yearlong aspiration paths. Vietnam has strong potential for positive GDP (Gross Domestic Product) growth and its vast tech-savvy, working-age group, which comprises 60 percent of its total population of 100 million, to be an economic powerhouse in Southeast Asia. The total newly registered capital, adjusted and contributed capital to buy shares, buy contributed capital of foreign investors from the beginning of 2022 reached 14.03 billion USD, as much as 91.1% over the same period in 2021. The country plays a crucial role in our development strategy in Southeast Asia.
Why HCMC for your first branch in Vietnam?
Back in 2015, we had 2 representative offices in Hanoi and HCMC. In the Hanoi office, we understand more regulators and the head offices of many of our corporate customers, while in HCM city, the team targeted the market, and then we get more understanding about what we can do when we open the branch. In 2022, with years of experience, Kasikorn thinks that we understand the market enough to provide customers with what we have.
The emergence of COVID-19 around the world has promoted the rapid development of the digital economy, which is the driving force for digital transformation: trade is improved, international standards are set for consumers, businesses to participate, and consumers have more choices. Digital platforms have helped connect supply and demand, making the distribution and circulation of goods in the very special context of the pandemic possible. Consumer behaviors that have been shaped in the past two years will shape new consumption habits and new business models in the future, thereby helping the digital platform model develop more after the pandemic.
We passionately believe that digital banking and technology-enabled services will help engage and onboard more individuals and businesses on more sustainable financial services. Vietnam’s digital economy is growing rapidly, we expect corresponding developments in the financial sector.
With that situation, KBank aims to penetrate the Vietnamese market using asset-light strategy without focusing on having many branches. Instead, we plan to make KPLUS the primary digital channel to serve customers. The bank will use KPLUS as a user-friendly digital banking platform to serve customers in Vietnam that meets customers’ needs anywhere, anytime for all groups of customers. We have also started offering KBank Biz Loan with an end-to-end digital process where customers can apply for loan online and get money debited into their account without coming to the branch.