Thai consumers now prefer to carry out the entire process of opening a bank account digitally, whether via a website or their smartphones.
FREMONT, CA: Thailand's traditional financial landscape is greatly influenced by digital banking transformation. The country offers a promising and mature digital banking market, but it requires regulatory guidelines to develop fully. In Southeast Asia, the financial engagement is relatively high, and Thailand represents one of the world’s top emerging digital banking markets. Due to the covid-19 pandemic, consumer behavior has significantly changed, and 66% of consumers are now more likely to open a bank account digitally. Consumers in Thailand expect a seamless banking experience, while more than 50% of such consumers expect less than ten questions in their application forms while opening a new bank account. 20% of consumers are also likely to drop out if asked more than five questions. Surprisingly, this expectation is significantly higher when compared with other economies such as UK and Australia. What Thai consumers are expecting is a frictionless and convenient digital experience.
Increased friction and security aspects are deemed appropriate by consumers when it comes to specific high-value financial products. 25% of Thailand's consumers are ready to apply for a mortgage digitally, a percentage slightly lower when compared to other countries. Due to the critical security aspect, nearly 48% of consumers are willing to answer 10 to 20 or more questions when applying for a mortgage online. Considering the rapid digitalization occurring across several industries, it is not surprising that consumers now also want the financial sector to adapt and embrace digitalization. Thai consumers now prefer to carry out the entire process of opening a bank account digitally, whether via a website or their smartphones. Suppose customers are not provided with the freedom to choose their channel while proving their identity and providing critical documents. In that case, most of them are expected to abandon the bank and go to another competitor, leading to an additional 20% delay. Consumers also find it TDS when asked to scan and email documents via disparate portals. Considering the region’s consumer market is only going to grow, it is best in the interest of financial institutions to adapt to the new consumer expectations and digitalize their operations.
