VIENTIANE, LAO PDR (28 October 2019) –
Krungsri (Bank of Ayudhya PCL) introduced
Krungsri Blockchain Interledger, a real-time international funds transfer services between Thailand and Lao PDR, to facilitate transactions in both US dollar and Thai baht, in order to support Thai and Lao cross-border trade and enhance flexibility for business without boundaries.
Mr. Dan Harsono, Krungsri Head of Retail and Consumer Banking, said “As trade and investment between Thailand and Lao PDR grow continuously with a sustained increase in trade value, Krungsri has deployed financial innovation to support the bilateral trade between the two countries. Thus, Krungsri has introduced Krungsri Blockchain Interledger to facilitate Thai-Lao entrepreneurs to successfully execute international funds transfer within a few seconds, overcoming the previous limitation which took at least 1-3 business days. In addition, the innovation is also capable of handling transactions both in Thai baht and US dollar.”
“Krungsri has confidence in the potential of Laos’ economic growth. Krungsri Research forecasts that Laos’ gross domestic product is to grow at 6.4% in 2019 and 6.5% in 2020. Considering the foreign direct investment in Lao PDR, Thailand is among the top foreign investors in the neighbor country. Therefore, the introduction of Krungsri Blockchain Interledger in the country will propel business sectors of the two countries to expand and accelerate in a faster rate.” Mr. Harsono added.
Currently, Krungsri has two branches in Lao PDR, Vientiane and Savannakhet, and operates hire purchase and installment loan businesses for retail and corporate customers in Lao PDR under the “Krungsri Leasing” brand, which posted a continued growth in the past five years.
Earlier, Krungsri Blockchain Interledger innovation marked a significant change in the financial landscape for the business sector after the successful deployment of Thailand’s first real-time international funds transfer for oil trading transactions between IRPC PCL and its Lao business partner, Bua Sawan Energy Co. Ltd. Subsequently, Krungsri gained trust from leading Thai and foreign corporate customers to deploy Krungsri Blockchain Interledger technology under the BOT regulatory Sandbox, resulting in Krungsri being the first bank to receive an approval from the Bank of Thailand for the development of the blockchain technology.