The Bank of Thailand (BOT) has approved three consortia led by Krungthai Bank, SCBX, and Ascend Money to establish virtual banks in Thailand, aiming for a launch in 2026. This move signifies a major shift towards branchless banking and greater financial inclusion. The selection was made after a rigorous application process, with the chosen entities now awaiting final approval from the Finance Minister.
Thailand is set to introduce three new digital-only banks, which will operate without physical branches. The Bank of Thailand has selected three groups of companies to establish these innovative banking institutions.
One group is led by Krungthai Bank, another by SCB X (the company behind Siam Commercial Bank), and the last one by Ascend Money (the company that runs the TrueMoney app).
Key Information
- Successful Consortia:
- Krungthai Bank: Partnering with Gulf, AIS, and PTT Oil and Retail (OR).
- SCBX: (parent of Siam Commercial Bank) collaborating with KakaoBank (South Korea) and WeBank (China).
- Ascend Money: (operator of TrueMoney app) backed by Ant International.
- Unsuccessful Applicants:
- Sea Group (owner of Shopee) in collaboration with BTS Group.
- Lightnet Group, partnering with WeLab (Hong Kong).
- Focus Areas:
- Ascend Money: Aims to serve the underserved population and small businesses, leveraging their TrueMoney app with 32 million users and focusing on economic equality.
- Krungthai-AIS-Gulf-OR: Combines the strengths of a major national bank with the digital capabilities and retail networks of AIS and OR.
- SCBX-KakaoBank-WeBank: Leverages the experience and technology of South Korea and China’s leading digital banks.
- Timeline:
- Final approval from the Finance Minister is expected by mid-2025.
- The virtual banks are expected to launch services by 2026.
These new banks are supposed to help people who don’t have easy access to traditional banks, like small business owners and those in rural areas. They hope to offer services like loans and savings accounts through apps and websites.
The companies chosen now have a year to get ready. If everything goes according to plan, these virtual banks could be up and running by 2026. The idea is to make banking easier and more accessible for everyone in Thailand.
