As a digital banking leader, Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) never stops developing its financial technology capabilities, and in a recent move SCB has announced a new business partnership with the Lightnet Group, a fintech startup offering financial services using blockchain technology. The collaborative effort will allow SCB to receive cross-border fund transfers from South Korea to Thailand through Sentbe, South Korea's leading payment service company and one of Lightnet's business partners. SCB will serve as a center distributing money in real-time to beneficiary accounts in Thailand at more than 24 banks in Thailand via the bank's PromptPay service. This new service model will increase its service capabilities, while improving transaction speeds under a secure environment and at lower cost, helping satisfy fast rising demands for better international fund transfers.
SCB Payment Product Solution and Management Executive Vice President Mr. Srihanath Lamsam noted that, "At present, demand for international payments, especially outgoing and incoming remittances, have shown a fast-rising trend. Banks have continuously embraced cutting-edge technology as a core for developing new capabilities for financial products and services. These efforts also include expanding business partners at both the global and regional levels to increase capabilities and scopes of services, while ensuring that all customer groups, both Thai and foreign, have full access to financial services. In line with these developments, SCB recently teamed up with the Lightnet Group, a leading fintech startup that utilizes blockchain technology to offer financial services, in this case receiving money transfers from South Korea to Thailand. SCB will serve as an intermediary distributing money to bank accounts for recipients in Thailand at over 24 banks via its PromptPay service in real-time. This cooperation will allow SCB to extend the scope of its international fund transfer services effectively via Lightnet's networks and channels. We expect that this new service model will help raise the service experience bar for seamless cross-border transfers for our customers and serve the growing demand for better cross-border remittances."
Lightnet Group Vice Chairman and Group CEO Mr. Tridbodi Arunanondchai added to Khun Srihanath's remarks by saying, "We are pleased to collaborate with a leading Thai bank such as SCB to launch a fund transfer service from South Korea to Thailand through Lightnet's leading business partner in each country, such as Sentbe from South Korea. The company's important goal is to serve as a new payment center for efficient, secure, low-cost, and speedy financial services, taking advantage of blockchain technology on Stellar Network's US. operating system. The system is an effective innovation for decentralized data storage centers that will transform digital payment models in the future. With this cutting-edge technology, cross-border transfers are affordable, allowing financial inclusivity for workforces located overseas, particularly those from Southeast Asia. The collaborative effort with SCB will accommodate Lightnet's and SCB's customers seeking to transfer money from South Korea to Thailand more easily and conveniently. In the future, the Company plans to increase its network with leading business partners in many countries to develop and expand its financial services covering Southeast Asia. Lightnet has received a series A investment worth 31.2 million USD, or approximately one billion baht, from leading companies such as UOB Venture Management, Seven Bank, Uni-President Asset Holding, Hashkey Capital, Hopeshine Ventures, Signum Capital, DU Capital, and Hanwha Investment and Security"
About Siam Commercial Bank
Siam Commercial Bank PCL was established by Royal Charter in 1906 as the first Thai bank. As of March 31, 2020, the Bank had Baht 3,136 billion in total assets and Baht 235 billion in market capitalization on a consolidated basis. The bank is one of Thailand's leading universal banks, providing a full range of financial services to clients in all segments, including wholesale, SME, and retail banking services, through its nationwide branch network. SCB is committed to becoming "The Most Admired Bank" by balancing value propositions to all stakeholders - customers, employees, shareholders, regulators, and society - and becoming a leader in shaping the future of Thailand's banking industry. More information is available on the Bank's website at www.scb.co.th.
About Lightnet Group
Lightnet is a fintech company headquartered in Singapore. The company was established to serve as a new payment center promoting financial mobility and inclusivity for unbanked and underbanked populations with a cutting-edge cross-border fund transfer system fully covering the region as a result of its effort to create an ecosystem for the region allowing accessibility to services for everyone.
The Lightnet Group has employed a state-of-the-art Velo blockchain operating system, an innovative decentralized data center that will transform future online financial transactions. The Group is striving to develop an improved cross-border payment market to establish itself as a clearing and settlement center across the Asia Pacific region. By taking advantage of blockchain technology and connecting with multiple financial networks in many countries, the Company will be able to offer digital financial services in an efficient, secure, affordable, and quick manner. The Lightnet Group plans to expand payment markets in Southeast Asia, which are expected to be valued at over 150 billion USD per year.
About SENTBE
Founded in 2015, SENTBE is South Korea's first neo bank specialized in foreign exchange service. SENTBE has revolutionized overseas remittance services with low fees, fast transaction speeds, and simple user experiences to create frictionless cross-border financial services. SENTBE has processed more than 1 million remittance transactions, having acquired Overseas Remittance and Payment Gateway license in Korea, as well as Major Payment Institution License in Singapore.
www.sentbe.com