Krungsri Consumer, the unsecured loan unit of Bank of Ayudhya (BAY), under the marketing brand of Krungsri, is open to the future use of cryptocurrencies and other forms of digital currencies via credit card spending, in line with the digital age.
Nayanee Peaugkham, head of Krungsri Consumer Group, said the company has been developing digital platforms for both credit card and personal loan products to serve customers in the digital era, in line with consumers' changing behaviour amid the pandemic.
At the same time, the company is open to credit card spending using cryptocurrencies and digital currencies in the future, she added.
Early this week, Mastercard announced that it is partnering with three leading cryptocurrency service providers in Asia-Pacific that will be launching crypto-funded Mastercard payment cards.
According to its news release, for the first time, consumers and businesses in Asia-Pacific will be able to apply for crypto-linked Mastercard credit, debit or pre-paid cards that will enable them to instantly convert their cryptocurrencies into traditional fiat currency, which can be spent everywhere Mastercard is accepted around the world.
The three digital asset service providers are Amber Group, Bitkub in Thailand and CoinJar in Australia, all of which offer cryptocurrency purchase and exchange services in their domestic markets.
Ms Nayanee said the company has been developing digital technology in all areas and improving efficiency in response to customers' demand in the new normal during the pandemic.
Krungsri Consumer has upgraded and added new features to its U Choose mobile application, which is for offering credit card and personal loan services.
U Choose has launched the new feature, U Card, to allow customers to apply for new credit cards. It also has implemented U Cash app to allow the clients to apply for personal loans.
Given the Covid-19 impact, however, Krungsri Consumer posted lower performance for the first nine months of the year. Its total credit card spending was 199 billion baht in the first nine months this year, up marginally by 1% year-on-year.
Total outstanding loans covering both credit card and personal loans stood at 128 billion baht, down 4%, while new customer accounts were 235,000, down 36%, and the new loans for both credit card and personal loans were 54 billion baht, declining 6%.
She said economic activities and consumer spending have improved after the government announced opening the country from Nov 1, so the company has forecast better credit card spending in November and December and continuing into next year.
With this scenario, Krungsri Consumer expects its total card spending throughout 2021 will be 285 billion baht, while total outstanding loans is expected to reach 142 billion baht, new customer accounts 350,000 and new loans 76 billion baht.
