Leading regional bank – Bangkok Bank President Chartsiri Sophonpanich, Director and Senior Executive Vice President Niramarn Laisathit, Director and Senior Executive Vice President and Corporate Secretary Kobsak Pootrakool, Senior Executive Vice President Chaiyarit Anuchitworawong, Executive Vice President, International Banking Group Nithawadee Limpodom and Bangkok Bank executives led a group of Thai media to Indonesia to observe the operations of Permata Bank at its Jakarta and Bali branch. The group was welcomed by Permata Bank President-Director Meliza Rusli and senior executives. This visit underscores the synergy between the two banks in enhancing service capabilities and delivering an improved customer experience. It also serves as an effective platform for business matching, supported by comprehensive financial services. Permata Bank is helping to attract investors to Indonesia and the ASEAN region, targeting both large-scale industries and projects aligned with the green economy policy. This initiative aligns with Bangkok Bank's Connecting ASEAN strategy, reinforcing its role as a 'trusted partner and reliable close friend' who are ready to support trade and investment through modern and comprehensive financial services from both banks to support customers' business growth efficiently and sustainably.

Bangkok Bank has acquired Permata Bank since 2020, resulting in an increase in the ratio of overseas loans to total loans of Bangkok Bank from 17% to 25% (as of December 2024), making Permata Bank now one of the 10 banks with the largest total assets in Indonesia. The bank has a network of 240 branches spread across 82 major cities nationwide to serve more than 6.2 million customers (as of March 31, 2025).

Bangkok Bank and Permata Bank, a member of the Bangkok Bank Group, organized a forum to explore opportunities in Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest economy that has ambitions to become the world's fourth largest economy by 2045. Working together, both banks are committed to supporting Thai investors throughout their investment journey in Indonesia through Permata Bank's extensive domestic network of more than 200 branches which support retail customers, Indonesian businesses, and international companies investing in the country. This event reinforces Bangkok Bank’s role as a ‘leading regional bank’ connecting business opportunities for strong and sustainable growth.

Bangkok Bank President Mr. Chartsiri Sophonpanich said that Indonesia is a country with high economic and social potential. Its GDP per capita has grown from USD 3,370 in 2015 to USD 4,980 in 2024, reflecting rising national wealth and making Indonesia an attractive destination for investors. Bangkok Bank is ready to support Thai entrepreneurs investing in Indonesia by using our experience of working in the country, sharing local insights, and providing access to our extensive banking network. As one of the first Thai companies to invest in Indonesia in 1968, the Bank asserted our confidence in Indonesia's potential by investing USD 2.3 billion in Permata Bank in 2020, the largest intra-ASEAN banking acquisition in history. As a result, Permata Bank has become one of the top 10 banks in Indonesia, with a network of more than 200 branches covering retail customers, domestic businesses, and international corporate clients investing in Indonesia.

"Bangkok Bank has always believed in Indonesia’s potential. Over the years, we have accumulated deep knowledge and understanding of the country and built a strong local network, while also encouraging other Thai companies to recognize the opportunities in Indonesia by sharing our experience and successes. Today, business operations are influenced by four major forces: climate change, technology and innovation, geopolitical and economic volatility, and the relocation of production bases along with the reversal of globalization trends. Additionally, the policies of major economies are contributing to global economic uncertainty. Despite these forces we believe ASEAN continues to serve as a center of stability and Thailand and Indonesia, as two of the region’s largest economies, play a vital role in creating stable and sustainable opportunities. By collaborating we not only mitigate the impact of global economic shifts, we also connect investors with opportunities across Southeast Asia and other regions," added Mr. Chartsiri.

Permata Bank President Director Ms. Meliza M. Rusli said that Indonesia is a country rich in natural resources and home to a population of 281 million people, 68% of whom are of working age. These attributes positively contribute to the country’s economic and social development, driving the nation forward, and will enable the implementation of the Indonesian government's “Golden Indonesia 2045” strategy to become the world’s fourth largest economy by 2045 by focusing on driving green economy projects, large-scale infrastructure investment, and digital technology projects. The Indonesian government is also proactively attracting foreign investment by implementing new legal frameworks and incentives, and improving the country’s infrastructure to make it more business-friendly. Permata Bank is fully committed to empowering clients and partners from across the region to seize these opportunities by providing comprehensive financial services and products. We also offer in-depth advisory with support from our network of over 240 branches across 82 major cities in Indonesia, ensuring smooth business operations for all our clients.

"Bangkok Bank and Permata Bank are ready to leverage their network, services, and local expertise to provide advisory support and facilitate trade and investment into Indonesia. This is especially relevant for high-potential industries such as the food and beverage sector, which has a market value exceeding USD 280 billion. At the same time, Thai seasoning products and ingredients are very popular among Indonesian consumers and rank among the top imports. This presents a significant opportunity for Thai entrepreneurs to expand their market presence and trade activities in Indonesia," said Ms. Rusli.

Bangkok Bank, as the main sponsor for the “FU ME Fest 2: Fun Beyond the Screen”, a festival of the year for content creators where over 100 famous influencers and artists gather, has organized a special activity for ‘Bangkok Bank Mobile Banking’ customers to win free entry tickets! by simply participating in the ‘Top Friends Get Friends’ activity and invite friends to sign up for ‘Bangkok Bank Mobile Banking’. The top 5 participants with the most invites will receive a free JOY CON ticket worth 2,350 baht, along with a band t-shirt. Participants can join all activity zones, including FU ME MARKET: A hub for rare items from favorite influencers, FU ME PHOTO BOOTH: Take photos and also get special surprises from influencers and FU ME TALK & PODCAST: Enjoy unlimited fun talks, as well as a Special Concert in the hall from influencers and artists, with special gifts from influencers in every activity zone.

Fans interested in participating in the ‘Top Friends Get Friends’ activity can invite friends to use the ‘Bangkok Bank Mobile Banking’ application from June 1 to July 31, 2025, to win JOY CON tickets by following these steps

1. Participants must press “Redeem privilege” to register for the activity in the “Rewards” menu on Bangkok Bank Mobile Banking.
2. Invite friends to sign up for Bangkok Bank Mobile Banking and friends must enter the participant's referral code (Participants can find their referral code on the “Me” page in the “Rewards” menu) in the “Enter code for new members” field and confirm it correctly. (Applicable for new customers who have never applied for Bangkok Bank Mobile Banking before)
3. Points will be awarded for successful referrals that meet the conditions. The top 5 participants with the most successful referrals during the campaign period will each receive a JOY CON ticket worth 2,350 baht, 1 ticket for 1-day entry (date selectable), along with one official band t-shirt.

Bangkok Bank is enhancing the digital payment experience through merchants nationwide by launching “Bangkok Bank Merchant Pro” or “Merchant Pro”, an application to receive money via QR Code with full features. It can be used with both Thai and foreign mobile banking. It is more convenient as it connects to Bangkok Bank accounts seamlessly. It helps merchants receive money quickly, manage sales professionally in one app. “BeMerchant NextGen” users are invited to migrate to the new app. The migration is convenient as users don’t need to change the QR Code for receiving money. The app will be available for download on June 1, 2025 onwards. This emphasizes the Bank’s role as a “trusted partner” to enhance the efficiency of payment services to meet the needs of entrepreneurs and support them to strongly move towards the digital economy.

Bangkok Bank Executive Vice President and Credit Card Division Manager Shoke Na Ranong stated that the Bank is committed to enhancing financial services to deliver a seamless and modern payment experience. To support this goal, the Bank recently launched the “Merchant Pro” app, designed to meet the diverse needs of merchants by enabling fast, convenient, and secure digital payments. The app also features integrated tools for both payment processing and in-store product management.

The “Merchant Pro” app comes with new features that will help merchants receive payments more conveniently as follow:

• Easy to use and secure: you can access the app with your mobile number, password and face or fingerprint scan
• There is a real-time summary through a dashboard that shows sales at a glance and a daily summary, separated by channels that receive money 
• Manage products within the app: increased convenience and clarity for stores including add photos, set prices, cart menu, and create QR Codes for individual cart checkout
• It is convenient for stores with multiple branches where there may be multiple cashiers, all of them can receive money 
• Notify every payment with a new notification sound effect that instantly notifies when the funds go into your account, so you can be sure that you receive all payments 
• Cross-border payments are supported including PromptPay, Visa, Mastercard, UnionPay, Alipay+ and WeChat Pay, making it convenient for both customers using Thai mobile banking systems and foreign tourists using Cross-Border QR Payment services
• Summarizes each day's sales including an automatic summary at 11 p.m. when the funds will be transferred to the account the next day

A trusted partner for a happy life – Bangkok Bank Director and Senior Executive Vice President and Corporate Secretary Kobsak Pootrakool and Executive Vice President Pochanee Kongkalai visited the ‘Happy Life by Money & Banking Magazine and Bangkok Bank’ exhibition booth, which was held for the first time at Money Expo 2025. The exhibition showcased the integration of art with financial activities under the concept of ‘Art Creates Beauty and Happiness’. As a ‘trusted partner and reliable close friend’, Bangkok Bank supported this exhibition booth to promote investment in happiness alongside financial investment for sustainability. This aligns with the Bank’s commitment to creating stability and prosperity for its customers in all aspects over the past 80 years. The Bank’s representatives were warmly welcomed by Dr. Chaiwat Wibulsawat, former Governor of the Bank of Thailand and Chairman of the Stock Exchange of Thailand, serving as Director of the Happy Life project.

Inside the exhibition booth ‘Happy Life by Money & Banking Magazine and Bangkok Bank’, there are 36 artworks from 18 artists in the Six-Point watercolor artist group founded by Dr. Suchart Wongthong, an internationally renowned watercolor artist. Other activities include classical music performances and lectures on the concept of composing songs by film score composers, poetry readings by a group of national artists in literature on the topics of ‘happiness’ and ‘finance’, in line with the concept of Money Expo 2025. Those interested can visit the exhibition booth ‘Happy Life by Money & Banking Magazine and Bangkok Bank’ at Money Expo 2025 from May 15-18, 2025, at Challenger Hall 2-3, IMPACT Arena Muang Thong Thani.

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