TBank upbeat after Siam City merger
Thanachart Bank (TBank) expects to grow its universal banking businesses in line with Thailand's economic growth, which is projected at 4-5 per cent a year.
The high hopes follow its complete merger with Siam City Bank on Saturday.
“After the merger, we have all bases of services, so-called universal banking, in retail business, SMEs [small and medium-sized enterprises] and the corporate side,” said Somjate Moosirilert, chief executive officer of TBank.
“TBank will likely grow in line with the country’s gross domestic product. Thailand has strong economic fundamentals and TBank will expand all of its bases.”
Through more than 680 branches across the country, the bank will focus on improving sales and services and reducing waiting time for clients.
TBank’s retail business, of which about 70-80 per cent comprises auto hire-purchase, has been strong in the past three years because of good performance in the agricultural sector, Somjate said. “We will also continue in this sector.”
Aside from its strength in the hire-purchase market, TBank aims to expand its services beyond the nation’s boundaries through the global network of the Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank) in more than 50 countries. The Canadian bank holds a 49-per-cent stake in TBank, in which it has invested US$1.2 billion (Bt37 billion), its largest investment outside Canada so far.
Brendan GJ King, deputy chief executive officer and the executive committee vice chairman, said: “With a nationwide network now, we will strengthen TBank with our ability to offer global access for clients to expand around the world like Mexico and the United States.” King comes from Scotiabank.
Thailand’s GDP is estimated to grow between 4-5 per cent, depending on the current challenges of the global economic environment. However, with its trade across the globe, “Thailand is not insulated from the global difficulty,” King said.
King is confident that Scotiabank will not be affected by the euro-zone debt crisis because of its limited exposure in Europe. “We mainly focus on Asia, North America and South America. [We concentrate on] high-growth markets, so-called emerging markets. We are well insulated from this difficulty,” he said.
