Summit Capital offers personal loans with fast approval
SUMMIT Capital Leasing, a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sumitomo Corp, is taking on Thailand’s commercial banks expecting to woo high-income earners for its new personal-loan product with a quick approval process.
The company yesterday officially launched the product, which is aimed at luring individuals earning more than Bt30,000 a month – a segment which, based on its own market research, it believes has sufficient quality to support loan growth, chief executive officer Wichit Phayuhanaveechai said.
“Amid the economic slowdown, we should focus on segments where we can operate with confidence. We should start in the quality segment and collect data, before stepping into other areas such as the mass market,” he said.
Even though the overall personal-loan market experienced limited growth last year due to the high level of household debt and the economic slowdown, outstanding loans in the non-bank segment accounted for a higher market share for the first time since 2011, he added.
Outstanding personal loans by non-bank lenders totalled Bt167 billion at the end of the year, an increase of 9.6 per cent from the 2014 level, while outstanding personal lending by the banks reached Bt158 billion – a decrease of 1.7 per cent.
The overall personal-loan market last year grew 3.8 per cent to Bt325 billion.
The CEO said Summit Capital had unofficially launched the personal loan in the middle of June. The product has received good feedback from big-bike customers in particular, with approved lending of Bt100 million.
The company has set a loan target of Bt300 million for the new product in its current fiscal year, which ends on March 31, 2017.
Wichit said the company aimed to provide an alternative funding choice for well-off consumers, focusing in the initial stages on luring customers in Bangkok and nearby areas before expanding the personal-loan customer base to the provincial market.
Plan for better life
Summit Capital is eyeing individuals aged 25 and up because, based on its research, people in this segment want to build their wealth and have plans for a better life, whether it is travelling, residential living or starting a family, he explained.
Individuals in this segment have generally worked for more than a year and are more responsible about repaying debt, he said.
Summit Capital will leverage the quick approval process from its hire-purchase business to the new personal loan, as speedy approval is a key requirement for personal-loan customers, Wichit said, adding that this would enable the new business to compete successfully with commercial banks.
The company will highlight its quick approval process, a maximum loan amount of Bt1 million and its five-year instalment repayment term to target customers, he stressed.
“Once customers have completed the required documents, we can approve the loan within one day,” he said.
The company also plans to develop direct sales early next year as a second personal-loan channel, with tele-sales being the sole channel at present.
Meanwhile, it is offering customers a promotional annual interest rate of 12.99 per cent for the| first six months’ instalments, after |which they will be charged 19.99 per cent.
