Citibank optimistic government spending will revive economy
Citibank Thailand has adopted an optimistic view of the economy now that the government has begun ramping up its spending, which the bank believes will have a multiplier effect on consumer spending in the long run.
Darren Buckley, country manager for Citibank Thailand, said yesterday that even though the economic slowdown had affected domestic consumption, including credit-card spending, the bank still believes consumption will regain its health when the government |starts pumping money into the economy with state projects.
Government spending accounts for 45 per cent of gross domestic product, which he views as relatively low.
Citibank Thailand is a major player in retail banking and wealth management. Buckley said the economic slowdown was an opportunity for its wealthy clients to consider investing more in offshore markets.
Most of Citibank Thailand’s wealthy clients have investment portfolios overseas.
The economic slowdown in Thailand has had a minimal impact on Citibank Thailand, as its customers are in the mid- to high income brackets, earning at least Bt30,000 a month.
To strengthen its retail banking business, it has implemented a new "smart banking" service featuring a Smart Teller Assist (STA) unit, enabling quick, paperless and automated transactions including deposits, withdrawals, fund transfers and payments. Citibank customers access these services by swiping their ATM cards in the STA machines.
Citibank’s STA is a first-of-its-kind technology in Thailand.
The bank is also implementing a "smart queue management" system at its three Bangkok branches. Clients can send a text message to the bank to reserve a queue number while on their way to their Citi branch. The bank will text its clients when their queue number is close to coming up.
The smart banking service was launched at Citibank’s Asoke branch on May 6, and the bank will expand it to its other two branches in Silom and CentralWorld soon.
Buckley said the bank hoped these services would enhance its clients’ experiences in doing transactions, as their positive feedback is important in attracting new customers.
Citibank Thailand has a customer base of 1 million. It hopes to grow that base by double digits by the end of next year after implementing the smart banking service.
