State agencies urged to promote level playing field in fintech sector

At a seminar for fintech entrepreneurs and financial institutions, Korn noted that the government was the game-changer for the financial landscape with the launch of PromptPay.
The changing of payment models means the model for banks has to change as well.
The tangible change, however, has been seen in non-banks, with Korn raising the case of Thailand’s Charoen Pokphand Group, which recently joined hands with Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba.
Another case is Thailand’s Jay Mart, which is able to use efficient data to tap unbanked customers by offering microfinance to customers at JayMart outlets and rural customers through its subsidiary Singer Thailand.
Korn said several non-banks were developing the same model as JayMart and time would tell whether this would be a trend in Thailand.
He said the government had an important role in supporting local fintech operators, and the Bank of Thailand (BOT) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) did well to relax regulations to help strengthen fintech operators.
Both the BOT and SEC created a sandbox as an experimental field for startup fintech companies before launching commercial products and services.
Korn said Thailand was more open to new fintech entrepreneurs after enhancing the environment for them to operate in. 
This will result in an influx of fintech entrepreneurs, meaning fair-competition measures from regulators are important, he added.
Small entrepreneurs should not be blocked, he added, with fair competition of critical importance for providing firms with longevity.
Korn also urged more collaboration between startups, banks, insurance firms and listed companies, which were not as prevalent as non-banks collaborations. 
Non-banks were opening space for working with fintech entrepreneurs. He highlighted Thursday’s launch of PropTech as another sign of the times.
The launch of PropTech shows that even property developers cannot avoid the influence of technology and if banks could open more space for fintech entrepreneurs, more Thais would use fintech firms’ products and services, he said.