Thailand lags in fintech development in Asia
But researchers hail the Thai government’s push for innovation
By Suchit Leesa-Nguansuk
Thailand ranks seventh out of 10 Asian countries in terms of regulatory advancement and financial attractiveness on a Taiwanese consulting firm’s FinTech Competitiveness Index.
“Among 10 developed and emerging economies surveyed, Thailand ranked second in the emerging economy group, behind only Malaysia,” said Joy Lin, co-founder of Ceresus, a data-driven customer experience research firm.
Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan top the index, followed by Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines. The index excludes China.
The survey, conducted in October, judges countries on eight aspects: political environment, funding potential, financial attractiveness, talent, regulatory advancement, customer and market constructs like smartphone penetration, innovation ecosystem and business environment.
The Thailand 4.0 policy lays out a solid foundation for the country’s financial technology (fintech) development. Thailand has the potential to leapfrog its early-stage digital banking services and move into integrated digital commerce or value-added fintech services, said Mr Lin, such as fast and convenient cross-border transfers and real-time consumer purchases.
Digital banking penetration in Thailand is close to 19 per cent — far from Taiwan’s 92 per cent and Singapore’s 94 per cent. Credit card usage in Thailand stands at 3.7 per cent, compared with 51 per cent for Taiwan and 31 per cent for Singapore.