KTB’s bold push into digital

Payong Srivanich, President of Krungthai Bank Plc (KTB), has played a key role in integrating plans in digital development and internal infrastructure restructuring. Thailand faces many long-standing challenges, including high household debt and an ageing society. More recent challenges include digital disruption and the spread of Covid-19. Krungthai Bank has stepped up measures, both in cooperation with the Bank of Thailand and those it undertakes itself, to mitigate the impact on customers.

It has implemented technology to help increase efficiency in work processes, and has helped the government with various digital ventures, while continuing to support the government’s Thailand 4.0 policy through the development of a digital platform for people to have better access to financial services.

It also developed a platform and acted as rights protector for the “Rao Mai Ting Kan” [No One Will Be Left Behind] scheme, a project providing assistance to 15.3 million Thais during the Covid slowdown.

The bank is part of the “Rao Tiew Duay Kan” [We Travel Together] campaign that generated cashflow in the economy of up to 20 billion baht.

On top of that, it played a key role in the “Khon La Khrueng” [Let’s Go Halves] scheme which contributed to the economic recovery at the grassroots level, and also helped educate people on how to use technology (improving digital literacy) via the bank’s applications, “Pao Tang” and “Thung Ngern”.

Thanks to its support for various government schemes, the bank can currently serve up to 40 million users.

The bank is keen on innovating and developing digital financial products/ services in line with rapidly changing customer behaviour to increase its competitiveness. In particular, the new Krungthai NEXT application was developed with world-class technology and includes features that can support future financial activities.

Pao Tang, an open banking application, can support digiservices tal such as healthcare via the Health Wallet and Thailand’s first digital bond trading via the Wallet SBM. Additionally, Thung Ngern, which is a convenient means for receiving payments, can serve as a substitute for traditional EDC machines. The bank, under this CEO, has also invented a method of payment using an ID card, for the first time in Thailand.

‘‘ The bank is keen on innovating digital financial developing rapidly and in line with products/services customer behaviour. chan ging ‘‘