SME Bank targets unbanked

The state-owned Small and Medium Enterprise Development Bank of Thailand (SME Bank) aims for 1 million of 2.7 million unbanked SMEs nationwide to gain access to the bank’s loan services after rolling out digital lending via a mobile app.

The bank has already launched the SME D Bank app for Android, with iOS access scheduled from the middle of next month, said president Mongkol Leelatham.

The app helps micro-SMEs better access loans, he said.

Some 2.7 million SMEs do not have permanent locations, preventing them from accessing bank loans, said Mr Mongkol.

After SMEs fill out loan applications, the information is sent to the bank’s headquarters before being forwarded to the branch closest to the applicant. The bank then can send out staff to ask for additional information, he said.

The bank is offering a low-rate loan of 1% for seven years to juristic SMEs and 3% for three years to operator-owned SMEs.

SME Bank is incorporating 50 privatesector apps to further develop the bank’s marketplace, he said, adding the number of apps will increase to 100 by year-end and 1,000 by next year.

SME Bank further looks to adopt artificial intelligence to analyse customer information for loan approval, he said.

The State Enterprise Policy Office recently linked information about tap water and electricity consumption to big data analytics technology to allow SME Bank to better assess risks and make faster loan approval decisions.

SME Bank can use the information pooled from four other state enterprises for big data analytics to verify loan applicants’ identities, including their location, while utility usage can shed light on their business activities, which can be used for loan approvals.

The four state enterprises are the Metropolitan Electricity Authority, the Provincial Electricity Authority, the Metropolitan Waterworks Authority and the Provincial Waterworks Authority.

Mr Mongkol said SME Bank aims to cut soured loans from new lending to 3% in the next three years from 5%.