Bangkok Bank will join Techsauce Global Summit 2019 where it will discuss the revolutionary potential of blockchain for trade finance, share ideas about how to get the most out of partnerships between financial institutions and technology companies and host a workshop on developing Thai-language chatbots.

Bangkok Bank Executive Director Charamporn Jotikasthira said the Bank is joining the Summit to promote and upgrade the technology ecosystem in Thailand while supporting connections and interchanges between Thailand and other parts of the world.

During the two-day summit Bangkok Bank will host four events: a panel discussion on blockchain in trade finance, a panel discussion on innovative FinTech partnerships, a workshop on how to apply blockchain solutions to your enterprise and a workshop on developing Thai-language AI chatbots.

As the first Thai bank to join the R3 consortium and the Bank that facilitated the first trade finance transaction in ASEAN using blockchain technology, Bangkok Bank is organizing the panel “Transforming trade – how Enterprise Blockchain can revolutionize global trade finance”. During the discussion, the Bank will share its knowledge and experience in developing trade finance transactions on R3's CORDA Platform using Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), or Enterprise Blockchain. The panel will be held on the Blockchain Vertical Stage and moderated by Mr. Thomas Glucksmann, Head of Data Management Solutions, Diginex Blockchain Solution. He will be joined by panelists Mr. Carl Wegner, Managing Director, Head of Asia, R3, Mrs. Pintuwan Kleijssen, Trade Finance Product Management, Bangkok Bank and Mr. Pongbhoka Buddhi-Baedya, Vice President and Manager, Global Payment Services Department, Bangkok Bank.

As the initiator of the first global FinTech accelerator in Thailand, the panel “Successful synergy – unlocking the power of partnerships” will enable the Bank to share its experience in helping FinTech startups accelerate in Thailand and in the region, while the panelists will share their experiences in using partnerships to facilitate innovation. The panel will be held on the FinTech Vertical Stage and moderated by Mr. Ian Mason, co-creator, Virgin StartUp. The panelists will be Dr. Pao Sriprasertsuk, Vice President, Innovation Department Manager, Bangkok Bank, Mr. Krit Phanratanamala, Investment Advisor, Bualuang Ventures Limited, Mr. Richard Jones, Senior Vice President APAC, Antworks and Mr. Varun Mittal, Global Emerging Markets & ASEAN FinTech Leader, EY.

Bangkok Bank’s team of data scientists will provide a foundational overview on developing Thai-language AI chatbots at the “Thai-language AI Chatbot Development Workshop (Google Dialogflow) with Bangkok Bank InnoHub’s Machine Learning Engineers”. The workshop will provide attendees with an opportunity to put Machine Learning theory into practice using Google Dialogflow.

In the “Revolutionizing trade finance through blockchain technology”, Bangkok Bank’s trade finance and digital banking specialists will be joined by an Enterprise Blockchain expert from R3 to help attendees utilize Bangkok Bank’s blockchain systems to expedite trade finance.

The Techsauce Global Summit 2019 is being held on June 19-20, 2018 at the Centara Grand Hotel at Central World.

 

Bangkok Bank Senior Vice President and Trade Finance Center Manager Kajohnsak Manaviriyakul (left), Senior Vice President and Securities Services Department Manager Mrs. Nuttanok Vichitthanarurk (middle) and Vice President and Global Payment Services Department Manager Pongbhoka Buddhi-baedya (right) represented the Bank to receive three awards at The Asian Banker Transaction Awards 2019 organized by The Asian Banker – a leading financial magazine in Asia. The three awards were The Best Trade Finance Bank in Thailand (for the eighth time), The Best Payment Bank in Thailand (for four consecutive years), and The Best Custody Bank in Thailand (for five consecutive years). This emphasizes the Bank’s status as one of the leading banks in Southeast Asia.

 

Bangkok Bank Singapore Branch Vice President for Operations Eric Tan (left) and Vice President for Credit & Marketing Stephen Lee (right) represented the Bank to receive three awards at The Corporate Treasurer Awards 2018 organized in Singapore by Corporate Treasurer – a leading financial magazine in Asia Pacific under Haymarket Financial Media Group. The three awards were The Best Bank in Thailand, The Best Cash Management House, and The Best FX House. This emphasizes the Bank’s status as one of the leading banks in Southeast Asia that continuously develops its products and services to meet the needs of customers.

Bangkok Bank will conduct system maintenance to upgrade its services. The Bank apologizes to customers for any inconvenience this may cause.

During the system maintenance, some services will be temporarily unavailable as indicated below:

• Bualuang mBanking, Bualuang iBanking and BIZ iBanking will be unavailable from Friday, June 14, 2019 at 09:00 p.m. to Saturday, June 15, 2019 at 09:00 a.m.
  
  
• Bangkok Bank ATMs and CDMs, Bangkok Bank Debit Cards, Bangkok Bank Credit Cards (only payment services will be available) and Funds Transfer from other banks to Bangkok Bank accounts will be unavailable from Friday, June 14, 2019 at 10:30 p.m. to Saturday, June 15, 2019 at 06:00 a.m.

Customers are advised to plan their transactions and reserve cash in advance. The Bank apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. For more information, please call Bualuang Phone 1333, available 24 hours a day.

Bangkok Bank President Chartsiri Sophonpanich received two awards at the Asian Banker Leadership Achievement Awards 2019 presentation ceremony organized by the Asian Banker, the leading financial magazine in Asia.

The first award, ‘The Asian Banker CEO Leadership Achievement for Thailand Award 2019’ recognized the Bank’s outstanding achievements in four areas – sustainable financial performance, specific achievements, long-term vision and business strategy, and teamwork driven by a singular and united vision. These achievements also enabled the Bank to win the second award ‘Best Managed Bank in Thailand 2019’.

The Bank received another three awards at the Asian Banker Leadership Achievement Awards 2019: Best Trade Finance Bank in Thailand, Best Payment Bank in Thailand, and Best Custody Bank in Thailand.

The Asian Banker Leader Achievement Awards 2019 is held every three years to honor bankers and banks in Asia that show outstanding strong and sustainable performance. This year’s winners were judged on their performance from January 2016 to December 2018. The award presentation ceremony was held at Ballroom 1 (Shangri-La Wing), Shangri-La Hotel, on May 29-30, 2019.

 

Bangkok Bank London branch manager Peeriyathep Homhuan and Senior Vice President Consumer Banking Voraporn Vidhayasirinun welcomed Bualuang Exclusive customers who visited Bangkok Bank’s London branch in the UK – the only branch of a Thai commercial bank in UK and Europe. The branch visit was part of a trip to the UK arranged by the bank for its customers. This trip emphasizes Bangkok Bank’s leadership status with an extensive international branch network of 32 branches in 15 major economies and more than 1,000 correspondent banks worldwide, covering Thailand’s major trade markets and global financial hubs.

 

Bangkok Bank invites customers to experience digital solutions in the My Tempo, My Style zone of Bangkok Bank’s booth at Money Expo 2019. Customers can add @Bangkok Bank Event on Line to get an e-Coupon to redeem a glass of bubble milk tea or Premium Milk at Brown Café, a famous Taiwanese bubble tea café from Chiang Mai, for only one baht a glass (limited to 1 glass/customer for the entire event) when paying via BeSure QR / Be Merchant using Bualuang mBanking application, Fitbit Pay or Garmin Pay linked with Bangkok Bank credit card. Customers can also join a raffle by making an e-Donation via ‘Jai Boon BeSure QR’ on Bualuang mBanking by scanning a QR code to donate 19 baht or more. This will give customers one entry into the QR raffle draw and the chance to win prizes such as luggage, folding umbrellas and tote bags (limited to 119 privileges/day).

Customers are invited to take part in digital experiences at Bangkok Bank’s booth at Money Expo 2019 from May 16-19, 2019 at Challenger Hall 2-3, Impact, Muang Thong Thani.

 

Bangkok Bank Senior Executive Vice President Ruchanee Nopmuang (4th from left, front row), together with top executives and Innovation Department Manager Dr. Pao Sriprasertsuk (5th from left, front row) welcomed startups from Israel, a country with world-class technology, led by Mr. Dagan Alony, Economic Consul of the Embassy of Israel to Thailand, and Mr. Otni Oron, Manager of Fintech Sector of Israel Export Institute, on the occasion of their visit to present their work and technological solutions that can be used to further develop the Bank’s products and services. They also exchanged ideas in terms of business and technology while forming a collaboration with the Bank. So far, the Bank has recognized the importance of using financial technology and innovation to develop Thailand’s innovation ecosystem. At the same time, the Bank aims to work with these efficient startups in order to use their technologies and innovations to further develop the Bank’s financial services to achieve growth and productivity which will enable the Bank to keep up with fast-changing consumer behaviors in the digital age.

 

Bangkok Bank Vice President of Credit Card Marketing Department Voranuch Siratharanont together with Somruthai Plodplong, Marketing Manager of Sukishi Intergroup Co., Ltd., launched two promotional campaigns (#specialpromotion) for Bangkok Bank Be1st debit card and credit card holders. The first campaign offers a 15% discount at Sukishi Korean Charcoal Grill when paying with a Bangkok Bank Be1st debit card or credit card. The second campaign offers a ‘Come 2 Pay 1’ all-you-can-eat shabu buffet at Sukishi Buffet and Sukishi Korean Charcoal Grill when redeeming 2,000 Bualuang Thank You Reward points. In addition, customers will receive 15% cash back when they pay by redeeming reward points equivalent to their actual spending. These two promotional campaigns for Bangkok Bank Be1st debit card and credit card holders are available from now until June 30, 2019. The Bank’s terms and conditions apply.

Bangkok Bank Chairman Piti Sithi-Amnuai, Executive Chairman Deja Tulananda and President Chartsiri Sophonpanich joined with the Bank’s Directors, management and staff in wearing yellow T-shirts to make merit by giving alms to 100 monks to celebrate the auspicious occasion of the Royal Coronation of King Rama X B.E. 2562.

The ceremony began at 7 a.m. when Chairman Piti Sithi-Amnuai led the ritual by lighting candles to pay respects to both the Three Jewels of Buddhism and the portrait of HM King Maha Vajiralongkorn. The Directors, management and staff then joined Buddhist chants and gave offerings. This was followed by blessings with holy water and giving alms to 100 monks to mark the auspicious occasion of the Royal Coronation of King Rama X B.E. 2562. The 100 monks came from five temples in Bangkok – Wat Yanawa, Wat Traimitr Withayaram, Wat Chakkrawat, Wat Pathumkongka and Wat Ratcha Singkhon.

Bangkok Bank President Chartsiri Sophonpanich then led the Directors, management and staff in a ceremony to pay respect to the portrait of HM King Maha Vajiralongkorn and extend their best wishes by saying: "I, along with the Bank’s Directors, management and staff, am delighted by the auspicious occasion of the Royal Coronation. All Thai people have faith and respect in the Monarchy which has long been one of the kingdom’s important institutions which has brought us prosperity, stability and happiness. Throughout the years, HM the King has dedicated himself to various projects that help all Thai people. When the country suffered a crisis, HM the King granted royal support to Thai people and encouraged us to nurture goodness and join forces in keeping our nation out of danger.” After that, national artist Naowarat Pongpaiboon read poems to honor HM the King. The Bank’s Directors, management and staff then sang songs and signed their names to pay tribute to King Rama X at the Royal Arch in front of Bangkok Bank Head Office, Silom Road.

In addition, the Bank’s management and staff demonstrated their loyalty to HM the King by giving away water to people who lined up to welcome HM the King at the Liab Phra Nakhon procession on May 5, 2019. The Bank’s management and staff also joined the Ministry of Defense to enhance the landscape along the route of the Royal Barge Procession on the auspicious occasion of the Royal Coronation of King Rama X at Wat Buranasiri Matayaram, Atsadang Road, to make it presentable to Thais and the world community as a whole.

Bangkok Bank joins Money Expo 2019 under the concept of ‘Symphony of Digital Life by Bangkok Bank’ and invites everyone to experience digital solutions for a modern age that combine a variety of financial services and products and provide greater convenience for all transactions via a digital banking system that covers travelling, spending, donating and investing money with special offers on loans, insurance and mutual funds. Money Expo 2019 runs from May 16 to May 19 at Challenger Hall 2-3, Impact Muang Thong Thani.

Bangkok Bank Director and Executive Vice President Dr. Thaweelap Rittapirom said that Bangkok Bank will join Money Expo 2019 which will be held under the theme of Digital Orchestra and feature financial products and services with various privileges under the concept of ‘Symphony of Digital Life by Bangkok Bank’. He said this reflects the Bank’s commitment to provide new financial experiences that combine the Bank’s financial products and services with those of our business partners to provide digital solutions that meet the needs of all customers and lifestyles of a digital age. “These products and services can be compared to a sweet symphony from an orchestra that harmoniously blends the sounds from various music instruments to capture the audience’s heart”.

Under this concept, Bangkok Bank will tell stories that resonate with each stage of consumer life in a digital age and cashless society and it will be illustrated by the digital experiences and solutions that the Bank uses to answer the needs of all customers. For instance, customers can use Bualuang mBanking to check their balance, make top-ups and view their BTS trip history without having to wait in line at the BTS station.

In addition, the Bank also offers a variety of e-Payment services to suit all lifestyles with greater convenience and safety including debit cards, credit cards, BeSure QR payments and Bualuang mBanking. What’s more, customers can enjoy the new e-Payment service that links Bangkok Bank credit cards to Fitbit Pay and Garmin Pay with an e-Wallet that customers can have with them anywhere anytime and enjoy greater confidence and safety.

Those who are keen on performing good deeds can donate easily via the e-Donation feature by scanning the QR Code on BeSure QR Jai Boon. The donated money will be sent instantly to the chosen organization and at the same time the user can request the Bank to submit the donation information to the Revenue Department for a tax benefit.

Those looking for wealth products can enjoy innovative financial planning and investment services that adopt technology to analyze and customize advice and investment portfolio management. With the Bank’s carefully selected financial and investment products, customers can achieve savings and investment goals more quickly and more efficiently. The new investment experience is based on customer needs.

To enable customers to experience new financial services that reflect digital solutions, the Bank’s booth covers 1,000 square meters at Money Expo 2019. The booth will be divided into four zones as follows:

• Digital Delight – Enjoy the colorful financial world in the digital age with convenient digital banking that are perfect for your daily life
  • Rabbit LINE Pay BTS (on Bualuang mBanking application)
  • Deposit
  • Be Merchant (service for merchant who accept payments via cards)
  • Fitbit Pay and Garmin Pay
  • Bualuang iBanking / Bualuang mBanking / SMS Account Alert / Bangkok Bank PromptPay
  • Bangkok Bank AirAsia Credit Card

• Composing Future – building your wealthy future with investment products and financial and insurance planning from our various partners
  • BeTogether from AIA
  • Insurance services from Bangkok Life Assurance (BLA) and Bangkok Insurance (BKI)
  • Mutual funds from BBL Asset Management (BBLAM) and Bangkok Capital Asset Management (BCAP)
  • Introducing Agent Service from Bualuang Securities (BLS)
  • Plan your smart finance with B-Advice

• Loans in Harmony – located at the center of the booth to showcase loan products to serve every customer need together with loan advisory services
  • Bualuang Home Loan
  • Loans for SME
  • Properties for sale

• My Tempo, My Style – various lifestyle activities in front of the booth demonstrating digital banking services to suit your lifestyle
  • Draw Your Star Raffle Event – make an e-Donation via ‘Jai Boon BeSure QR’ by scanning a QR code to donate 19 baht or more via Bualuang mBanking and get one right to join the QR star raffle draw and the chance to win prizes such as luggage, folding umbrellas and tote bags (limited privileges / day)
  • Special discounts on fitness watches from Fitbit and Garmin with a 0% installment of 4-10 months when purchased with a Bangkok Bank credit card. Receive a special gift when connecting a Bangkok Bank credit card with the e-Wallet via the fitness watch

Those interested can visit Bangkok Bank’s booth to inquire about any product and service, receive investment or financial advice, or apply for a service. All visitors will receive special promotions and gifts during Money Expo 2019 from May 16-19, 2019 at Challenger Hall 2-3, Impact, Muang Thong Thani.

Thailand’s economic growth in 2019 is expected to be 3.8 percent, decreasing from 4.1 percent in 2018. Amid slower world trade and risks from the US trade policies, exports declined for the first two months of the year. This has squeezed manufacturing production of export-oriented sectors, which has led to the fall in overall domestic production activity. Nevertheless, private consumption continued to expand in line with continuous improvement in farm income. Going forward, although downside risks to Thailand’s economic growth are greater given weaker global economy, public policy continuity—including the implementation of infrastructure projects such as the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC)—will be key to underpinning private sector sentiment. Moreover, policies to improve household purchasing power—which are likely to be implemented by the incoming government—will, to some extent, provide additional support to domestic consumption.

Bangkok Bank and its subsidiaries reported a net profit attributable to owners of the Bank of 9,028 million baht, a slight increase of 0.3 percent from the first quarter of 2018. Net interest income increased by 6.9 percent and net interest margin increased from 2.34 percent to 2.48 percent. Non-interest income decreased by 28.3 percent due mainly to declines in gains on investments and net fees and service income. The decrease in net fees and service income was due to the exemption of transaction fees via digital channels and lower fees from loan-related services. Operating expenses declined by 3.1 percent and the ratio of expense to operating income stood at 42.6 percent.

At the end of March 2019, the Bank’s loans amounted to 2,029,810 million baht, a decrease of 2.6 percent from the end of 2018 mainly due to the decline in loans to businesses and consumers. The ratio of non-performing loan (NPL) to total loans was 3.5 percent, while the ratio of loan loss reserves to NPL was 189.0 percent.

In terms of capital, as per the Bank of Thailand (BOT) announcement of the guidelines for identifying and regulating Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D-SIBs), Bangkok Bank, which is classified as a D-SIB, is required by the BOT to have additional capital to meet the Higher Loss Absorbency (HLA) requirement, which raises the Common Equity Tier 1 ratio by 1.0 percent, beginning with a 0.5 percent increasing from January 1, 2019, rising to 1.0 percent from January 1, 2020 onwards. For the Bank, with the inclusion of net profit for the six months from July to December 2018 and net profit for the first quarter of 2019 minus the May 2019 dividend payment, the total capital adequacy ratio, the Common Equity Tier 1 capital adequacy ratio and the Tier 1 capital adequacy ratio of the Bank and its subsidiaries would be approximately 18.9 percent, 17.4 percent and 17.4 percent, respectively. These capital adequacy ratios are above the Bank of Thailand’s minimum capital requirements and satisfy capital buffer requirement as per the guidelines on D-SIBs.

 

Bangkok Bank was awarded ‘Bank of the Year 2019’ by Money & Banking magazine for its outstanding performance and profitable growth. It is the 11th time the Bank has won the award in the past 13 years. The Bank’s net profit in 2018 was the third-highest among Thai banks at 35.3 billion baht, representing the highest net profit of 18.51 baht per share. In addition to its high profitability, Bangkok Bank was recognized for its prudent and steady approach in allocating reserves for doubtful accounts. Its total loan loss reserves in 2018 amounted to 147.5 billion baht, or 7.08% of total loans, which was also the highest amount among Thai banks. According to the Bank for International Standards, Bangkok Bank has a total capital adequacy ratio of 17.96%, comprising Tier-1 capital of 16.43% and Tier-2 capital of 1.53%. The Bank’s business has been guided by the philosophy of aspiring to be a trusted partner and reliable close friend. This emphasizes the value Bangkok Bank places on partnership, and developing long-term, trusted partnerships with its customers, sustaining relationships over decades and across generations. The Bank stays close to all its customers to anticipate their needs and provide them with appropriate advice and support, so they can adapt to changing circumstances.

 

Bangkok Bank President Chartsiri Sophonpanich (3rd from left), Executive Director Charamporn Jotikasthira (2nd from left) together with the bank’s top executives joined Bank of Thailand Governor Veerathai Santiprabhob (3rd from right) and executives from central banks and financial institutions across ASEAN to showcase ASEAN payment connectivity innovations at the 5th ASEAN Finance Ministers’ and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting and related meetings in Chiang Rai. The Bank signed an MOU to support financial innovations and international payment services, including development of Letter of Credit (L/C) transactions between Indonesia and Thailand using Blockchain technology. Bangkok Bank is the only Thai bank to have joined with R3 Consortium to develop the L/C service, an important financial service for international trade finance which uses Distributed Ledger (DLT) or Blockchain technology. The Bank also signed an MOU on international payments with BeWallet Interoperable QR Payment under a collaboration between Singapore and Thailand. One of the Bank’s main policies is to develop financial innovations to increase efficiency of financial systems, respond to the needs of all customer groups and support ASEAN economic connectivity, as well as enable more ASEAN people to access financial services.

 

Bangkok Bank Director Dr. Amorn Chandarasomboon, Director H.S.H. Prince Mongkolchaleam Yugala, Executive Vice President and Corporate Secretary Apichart Ramyarupa and other executives and staff visited, donated money and offered lunch to injured veterans, police officers and volunteers who have sacrificed themselves for the nation in tribute to Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn on the auspicious occasion of HRH’s birthday on April 2, 2019. Bangkok Bank’s executives and staff organized recreational activities along with students from Bunditpatanasilpa Institute. Deputy Director - General of The Veterans General Hospital Lieutenant General Rugpol Chanluang gave a welcome address at Veterans General Hospital on Vibhavadi Road. Bangkok Bank has organized this annual activity for more than 32 years.

Bangkok Bank has prepared more than 36 billion baht in cash reserves for 10,000 ATMs nationwide to serve customers during the Songkran holiday from April 13-16, 2019, so customers can rest assured that cash will be available for withdrawals from Bangkok Bank ATMs during the Songkran holiday.

Bangkok Bank revealed that it has prepared more than 36 billion baht in cash reserves for 10,000 ATMs nationwide to serve customers during the Songkran holiday from April 13-16, 2019. Customers can also use the Bank’s service at 319 microbranches in shopping malls and communities nationwide, which will be open for business as usual during Songkran. The Bank will resume normal operations from Tuesday April 17, 2019.

In addition, customers can perform financial transactions via digital channels on a free-of-charge basis via Bualuang mBanking and Bualuang iBanking for instant money transfers between different regions and banks, PromptPay transfers, bill payments for products and services, as well as top-up services. Customers can be confident that they will be able to perform their financial transactions in a convenient, fast and safe manner.

Bangkok Bank introduces all-in-one features via Bualuang mBanking to check BTS balance, top up and view number of rides on Rabbit LINE Pay BTS and also offers special promotions to those who link Rabbit LINE Pay BTS to Bualuang mBanking.

Bangkok Bank Executive Vice President Prassanee Ouiyamaphan, Non Branch Distribution Channel, said Bangkok Bank has developed new features on the Bualuang mBanking application that allow customers to promptly link their Rabbit LINE Pay BTS to Bualuang mBanking. This service will provide greater convenience to users so that they can top – up the Rabbit LINE Pay account, instantly check their BTS balance, view the number of rides, buy 30-Day Trips and view their BTS travel history via the Bualuang mBanking application, while answering the lifestyle needs of new generation people who reside or work in town and always commute on the BTS.

“These new features on the Bank’s application will play a part in helping customers to better manage things in their daily life. Moreover, Bangkok Bank will launch new features in order to respond the lifestyle needs of new generation customer,” said Mrs. Ouiyamaphan.

Customers can start using Rabbit LINE Pay BTS on Bualuang mBanking by registering Rabbit LINE Pay BTS at BTS stations, then linking Rabbit LINE Pay BTS to Bualuang mBanking application under the ‘Rabbit LINE Pay’ menu and they can begin using it right away.

Bangkok Bank offers special promotions for Bualuang mBanking customer to get 1) three free rides when registering Rabbit LINE Pay BTS at BTS stations for the first time 2) free 100 baht debited to Bangkok Bank account and e-Coupon for BTS discount of 50 baht when linking Rabbit LINE Pay BTS to Bualuang mBanking during March 15 - September 15, 2019 (limited to 70,000 privileges for the entire campaign period).

Currently, there are 1.4 million people commuting on BTS daily. Furthermore, there are a lot of Rabbit LINE Pay users and Bualuang mBanking users, 5.3 million users and 7 million users respectively.

As such, these new features will fit perfectly with this target group and provide them with greater convenience on payments that they can make on Rabbit LINE Pay.

 

Bangkok Bank Director and Executive Vice President Thaweelap Rittapirom (middle) and Executive Vice Presidents Dr. Piyapan Tayanithi (2nd from left) and Thantika Bodhisompon (3rd from left) presented Baht 500,000 to Mongkol Bangprapa (3rd from right), the Thai Journalists Association president, to help with the organization of a dinner talk to mark the 64th anniversary of the Thai Journalists Association on 5 March. At the event, there were speeches from Veerathai Santiprabhob, Governor of the Bank of Thailand, on the topic of ‘Thai Economy amidst Changes’ and Suphachai Chearavanont, Chief Executive Officer of Charoen Pokphand Group, on the topic of ‘Thai Economy in Trade War’ as well as an awards presentation ceremony for various categories. Bangkok Bank has been a major sponsor of this event for several years as it is aware of the importance of the media's role and their responsibility to probe and share opinions on improving society.

Bangkok Bank InnoHub, the first global FinTech accelerator in Thailand, has showcased innovations and real-use cases from the program’s eight finalists to the public, potential investors and others in Thailand’s innovation ecosystem on Demo Day.

The eight startups, which were selected from 128 applicants across 28 countries, have all passed a ‘Real use-case’ with Bangkok Bank, meaning that everyone has demonstrated how their technology can be used to benefit the Bank’s customers and/or improve the Bank’s systems in line with five themes - Creating Unique Customer Experience, Digitization and Automation, Future SME Solution, Innovative Payment, and Discovering Cutting Edge Technologies. Three startups are in the scoping stage with the Bank, three are in ‘Proof-of-Concept’ and two are in the pilot stage.

Bangkok Bank InnoHub is committed to bringing new technologies and future innovation in FinTech and beyond to Thailand’s digital ecosystem. The accelerator program, now in its second year, is unique in Thailand because it targets more mature startups and focuses on developing long-term business relationships with them.

Bangkok Bank President Chartsiri Sophonpanich said the evolution of Bangkok Bank InnoHub demonstrated how the Bank was creating new opportunities within Thailand’s innovation ecosystem for startups working in FinTech and other innovative technologies.

“Bangkok Bank is keen to strengthen its position as an innovator in Thailand by building on the success of last year’s InnoHub Season 1,” said Mr Chartsiri. “We learned from our experience working with the startups last year. We saw an opportunity to add more value to the local ecosystem, expanding our focus beyond FinTech to include solutions that solve a wider range of problems and by working with more mature startups with an existing track record.”

“Not only does this support Thailand’s ambitions to become a leading regional hub for innovation, our international focus helps connect startups with opportunities in Thailand and ASEAN.”

The 12-week intensive engagement with executives from Bangkok Bank’s business units and Nest, the Bank’s corporate innovation partner, provides a structured pathway to enable startups to develop a product or service that is usable.

Nest Chief Executive Officer Mr Lawrence Morgan said: “Season 2 of Bangkok Bank InnoHub proves that corporate startup collaboration will drive the future of FinTech in Thailand. Over the last two years, our partnership with Bangkok Bank has achieved tremendous success; for the startups, this means early Proof-of-Concept discussions while the program is still running, and for the Bank it means greater agility in adopting new technologies.”

Bangkok Bank Vice President and Innovation Department Manager Dr Pao Sriprasertsuk, who has led the program, said: “Bangkok Bank InnoHub is focused on working with startups from their point of view. Many of them want the opportunity to work with the Bank rather than just learning from it. This is especially true for more mature startups.”

“Our program is unique because it focuses on the business application of technology. We give them the opportunity to test usability and feasibility, run pilots, develop solutions for their products and services, and enter negotiations with potential investors. At the beginning of the 12-week program we connect the startups with relevant Bank teams so they are focused on developing viable and usable products and services from the get-go.”

Demo Day featured the eight startups that completed the InnoHub program:

• Antworks (Singapore): A global, artificial intelligence (AI) and intelligent automation company;
• CryptoMove (United States): CryptoMove Tholos Vault protects API (Application Programming Interface) keys and secrets for multi-cloud infrastructure with moving target defense;
• EYWA Media (Singapore): a cross-screen marketing technology platform that connects various channels and drives interactive customer experiences and monetization models;
• Jumper.ai (Singapore): an AI powered platform enabling brands to capitalize on social media posts;
• Pand.ai (Singapore): a leading conversational AI specialist for financial institutions in Asia;
• Pymlo (Hong Kong): provides an accounting platform for SMEs and startups to manage business operations and accounting for a fraction of the usual time and price;
• Sepulsa (Indonesia): a bill payment aggregator for online and offline channels;
• Vymo (India): an AI-enabled Personal Assistant for sales.

Bangkok Bank InnoHub Season 2 Demo Day took place on March 13, 2019 at Park Hyatt Bangkok.

 

Bangkok Bank Executive Chairman of Deja Tulananda (2nd from left), presented a 1,000,000 baht donation to the Cancer Immunotherapy Fund, Faculty of Medicine, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital. Center of Excellence in Systems Biology Director Dr. Trairak Pisitkun (2nd from right), Dr.Naphat Chantaravisoot (right) and Dr. Piriya Wongkongkathep (left) represented the Faculty of Medicine, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital to receive the donation which will support the development of antibodies against cancer and a personalized cancer vaccine. Bangkok Bank has supported the hospital’s research project for two consecutive years.