Bangkok Bank (BBL) has surpassed its credit card spending target for the first two months of 2023, driven by the recovery of Thailand's economy and tourism sector.
For January and February, BBL's credit card spending grew 17% year-on-year, besting the bank's target of 15% for the entire year.
The growth was fuelled by three core categories -- shopping, petrol and travel -- as the economy improved and borders reopened to tourism, said Shoke Na Ranong, the bank's executive vice-president and credit card division manager.
The travel category gained from spending on travel abroad attributed to pent-up demand after the pandemic.
Normally travel abroad accounts for 15% of the bank's credit card spending, but the proportion rose to 17% for the first two months of the year.
The positive momentum is expected to continue throughout the year, with BBL highly likely to outstrip its target growth rate of 15% for the full year, said Mr Shoke.
"Higher consumer confidence in line with the domestic economic recovery and factors such as the upcoming Songkran festival should encourage card spending, making it a good year for the business," he said.
BBL, the country's largest lender by total assets, aims to increase the number of credit cardholders from 2.1 million to 2.3 million by the end of this year.
However, the bank still maintains its target growth of credit card spending for this year at 15%.
BBL wants to keep the credit card non-performing loan ratio steady at no more than 2%, compared with 1.7-1.8% last year, said Mr Shoke.
He said the bank has no plans to offer a buy now, pay later (BNPL) feature for its credit card business, but it is monitoring the service area of other card issuers.
Given the higher risk associated with BNPL services, BBL will not be among the first providers to offer it, said Mr Shoke. However, the bank does provide customers with the option of debt instalments with zero interest charges for a specific period.
In terms of its debit card business, BBL is focusing on digital growth rather than offering physical debit cards to new card applicants.
He said this move aligns with the digital era and the digital payment direction of the two international card service providers, Visa and Mastercard.
The bank has fewer than 10 million debit card customers, with some using digital services without physical cards.
