08 January, 2011
Counter Service seeking microfinance opportunity
Published: 12/11/2010 at 12:00 AM
Newspaper section: Business
Counter Service Ltd, a bill payment service provider, plans to expand into microfinance lending to maximise benefits from its strong infrastructure of 7,000 outlets nationwide and its real-time IT system, says deputy general manager Lalada Dechatiwong Na Ayuthya.
The subsidiary of the 7-Eleven operator CP All Plc proposed its microfinance plan to the Bank of Thailand last year and is awaiting a decision. A response could depend on clarification of microfinance business regulations under the country's Financial Master Plan II.
Counter Service currently offers a wide range of bill-payment services. Providing micro-lending would be a new business opportunity, through outsourcing services for consumer loan applications to financial institutions, said Mrs Lalada.
"The company is looking for more business partners in the financial sector from the partners we have now to ensure we are ready to expand our service after the regulations on microfinance are clear," she said. "They should be experts in providing services for micro-business."
While Counter Service would be another channel for loan applications, credit analysis would be the banks' duty as they had expertise in that area, she added.
Counter Service has 7,000 outlets nationwide, of which 60% are in provincial areas, and the ratio is expected to increase over the next few years. Mrs Lalada said bill payments were the company's core business with around 10 million transactions estimated this year.
The growth rate for the business is around 10% per year and it should remain positive despite higher competition with discount stores, mainly in service fees.
Tesco Lotus and Thailand Post also provide bill payment services with a minimum fee of 5 baht per transaction, while Counter Service charges 10 baht.
Counter Service has collaborated with Krungthai Card, the consumer finance subsidiary of Krung Thai Bank, to provide consumer loan applications. KTC plans to use the Counter Service network to expand its customer base for credit cards and personal loans by 150,000 and 100,000 respectively next year. It currently has 1.7 million credit-card accounts and 500,000 accounts for personal loans.
Source: Bangkok Post
Newspaper section: Business
Counter Service Ltd, a bill payment service provider, plans to expand into microfinance lending to maximise benefits from its strong infrastructure of 7,000 outlets nationwide and its real-time IT system, says deputy general manager Lalada Dechatiwong Na Ayuthya.
The subsidiary of the 7-Eleven operator CP All Plc proposed its microfinance plan to the Bank of Thailand last year and is awaiting a decision. A response could depend on clarification of microfinance business regulations under the country's Financial Master Plan II.
Counter Service currently offers a wide range of bill-payment services. Providing micro-lending would be a new business opportunity, through outsourcing services for consumer loan applications to financial institutions, said Mrs Lalada.
"The company is looking for more business partners in the financial sector from the partners we have now to ensure we are ready to expand our service after the regulations on microfinance are clear," she said. "They should be experts in providing services for micro-business."
While Counter Service would be another channel for loan applications, credit analysis would be the banks' duty as they had expertise in that area, she added.
Counter Service has 7,000 outlets nationwide, of which 60% are in provincial areas, and the ratio is expected to increase over the next few years. Mrs Lalada said bill payments were the company's core business with around 10 million transactions estimated this year.
The growth rate for the business is around 10% per year and it should remain positive despite higher competition with discount stores, mainly in service fees.
Tesco Lotus and Thailand Post also provide bill payment services with a minimum fee of 5 baht per transaction, while Counter Service charges 10 baht.
Counter Service has collaborated with Krungthai Card, the consumer finance subsidiary of Krung Thai Bank, to provide consumer loan applications. KTC plans to use the Counter Service network to expand its customer base for credit cards and personal loans by 150,000 and 100,000 respectively next year. It currently has 1.7 million credit-card accounts and 500,000 accounts for personal loans.
Source: Bangkok Post
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