Global giant GE Finance, the leading consumer finance company, is aggressively rebranding itself and is opening its retail bank at the end of December. It is also eyeing 15 to 20 percent growth this year. The move is a key 2005 strategy to muscle in its position as a leader in Thailand's consumer finance market.
Piriyah Wisedjinda, GE Money Thailand's president, said, "2005 will be a challenging year for consumer finance service providers due to greater competition and new service providers. Re-branding is one of our key strategies to stay ahead in the competition, and we will invest over 200 million baht behind this initiative."
The GE Money brand is aggressively moving away from traditional banking. "GE Money combines the trustworthiness of banks and the speed of finance and credit companies to deliver a unique service to our consumers and clients," enthused Piriyah. It aims to grow and change along with its customers priorities, from the time a newly graduated customer starts working, to getting married, having kids, buying a house and a car, to retirement. "GE Money will be with you all the way," promised Piriyah.
Korn Chatikavanij, former managing director of JP Morgan Thailand, who recently won a seat for the Democrat party in Bangkok said, "It is a very crowded space already, but it will not be bad for consumers. In fact, more competition will be good for consumers."
The new GE Money will be applied to its auto finance, personal loans and other products that will be launched in the future. The new retail bank will also carry the same brand and will be known as GE Money Retail Bank. It will be classified as a local bank; thus, it can open other branches in Thailand. "This will strengthen our position as a leader in Thailand's consumer finance market through a strong common identity among our many market leading products," said Piriyah. "Consumers will clearly be able to associate their good experiences with GE's consumer finance business with a single brand that stands for speed, convenience and a "can do" attitude." At present, the company only has one office, which is its headquarters, located at the All Seasons Place on Wireless Road. The public relations company hired by GE Money for Thursday's press conference refused to give any more details about any other possible branches of GE Money.
GE's new retail bank will be positioned in a new market space. "We will deliver financial products and services to customers with speed, flexibility and accessibility while providing them with value and the credibility of one of the world's few triple-A rated companies," Piriyah added.
In 2004, GE's consumer finance businesses in Thailand registered around 35 percent growth over 2003. It had a loan portfolio of around 125 billion baht, with almost 3 million customers. Auto finance businesses accounted for the largest portion of the consumer finance business, standing close to 70 percent of the entire business.
Average delinquencies for GE's consumer finance products were at around 1.5 percent, which Piriyah said was approximately half the estimated industry average of 2 to 3 percent. He attributed the low delinquency rate to effective risk management practices and responsible lending, allowing the company to maintain quality growth.
GE Money Retail Bank is an affiliate of GE Money Thailand, which is one of Thailand's pioneers in consumer finance. Previously known as GE Capital, GE Money started its operations in Thailand in the auto finance market in 1994 and was the first company to greatly simplify loan application processes, minimising as well as reducing loan application turnaround times from weeks to mere minutes.
GE Money has banking operations in around 17 countries including the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Sweden and Switzerland.
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