Bangkok--12 Mar--KBank KASIKORNBANK, in cooperation with JCB, will accept JCB cards via the Bank’s retail network, starting with online merchants. Subsequently, card acceptance will expand to over 30,000 locations throughout Thailand including cash advances via KBank’s ATMs. The Bank projects that spending via JCB cards should increase by 10 percent. Mr. Krisada Lamsam, Executive Vice President, KASIKORNBANK, said in a recent interview that the Bank, in an alliance with JCB International (JCBI), Japan’s largest credit card issuer and acquirer, will expand JCB card service via KBank’s merchant network. In March, the service will initially be available for online merchants, and will be targeting online booking with airlines, hotel reservations and other tourism-related businesses on the Web. This will be an added convenience for both Japanese tourists and businesspersons working here. In July 2008, acceptance of JCB cards will be expanded to the Bank’s retail merchants, totaling around 30,000 locations, and cash advances will be available via KBank’s 3,860 ATMs across the country. This alliance will help strengthen the Bank’s foreign cardholder base, especially affluent Japanese customers. Each year around 1.25 million Japanese tourists and businessmen visit Thailand. At the same time, the Bank’s retail merchant network is expected to benefit from increased sales and services to more than 58 million JCB cardholders. The Bank projects that this alliance with JCBI will likely boost spending within the KBank merchant network by 10 percent initially. Mr. Kenji Seto, President and COO of JCB International revealed that Thailand is among the company’s top targets of service expansion for JCB cardholders because Japanese citizens like to travel and also operate businesses in Thailand. This cooperation with KASIKORNBANK is vital to the operational strategies of JCBI in Thailand. KBank’s long experience in credit card business has fostered alliances with numerous merchants and has also made substantial progress in offering services to leading merchants online. This cooperation will provide JCB cardholders with greater convenience in spending and traveling in Thailand, as well as being an important opportunity for Thai businesspersons to extend services to JCB cardholders. At present, JCB is Japan’s largest credit card issuer and acquirer and has extended their network with bill payments via credit cards globally since 1981 by forming alliances with more than 350 local banks and financial institutions in many countries. At present, there are around 58 million JCB cardholders worldwide.