To achieve this aim, the company says it will invest Bt100 million in technology, expand the number of partners from 800 to 900, and increase the number of employees from 1,600 to 1,800.

“The motorcycle industry is heavily dependent on the macroeconomic outlook of the country, presenting a challenge for us in 2019,” Wichit Phayuhanaveechai, CEO of Summit Capital Leasing Co Ltd, said during a press conference on Tuesday.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently adjusted their global GDP growth forecast for 2019 down from 3.7 to 3.5 per cent due to trade uncertainties.

Meanwhile, Thailand’s GDP is expected to grow by 3.8 per cent in 2019, down from 4.2 per cent last year, according to Siam Commercial Bank’s Economic Intelligence Centre.

As a result of slowing economic growth, the total sales of motorcycles in the Kingdom are expected to fall by 1.24 per cent year on year, from 1.78 million in 2018 to 1.7 million this year, according to the Department of Land Transport.

But those lacklustre forecasts do not discourage Wichit.

“In 2018, our total revenue increased by 30 per cent. Despite the challenging prospects in the market, we aim to increase our total revenue by an additional 15 per cent this year,” he said.

To achieve it, Summit Capital will first invest Bt100 million to modernise its technological support system for digital lending services. The company last year developed its digital loans application service, enabling approval just 30 minutes after applications are submitted.

“This year, we will introduce a GPS-enabled debt collection system, which will be active at the end of January. This will allow us to verify the living address of our customers and increase our debt collection capabilities,” he explained.

“In 2018 Summit Capital’s level of non-performing loans (NPL) stood at 0.9 per cent. We believe the new GPS-enabled debt collection system will allow us to maintain that level at under 1 per cent in 2019,” he claimed.

Summit Capital will also strengthen its relations with motorcycle dealers, growing from 800 partners with 2,500 showrooms in the previous year to 900 partners with 2,800 showrooms this year.

Finally, the motorcycle hire-purchase company will expand its number of employees, as well as introduce new training courses to help employees adapt to new technology.

“This year, we will increase the number of employees from 1,600 to 1,800,” he said.

“Furthermore, we will start new training courses for our employees through the Summit Academy System to increase their digital capabilities and professionalism in the digital era.”

When asked whether he expects the Bank of Thailand (BOT) to increase their policy rate in 2019, Wichit predicted it would hike rates once in mid-2019 by 0.25 points, increasing the policy rate from 1.75 to 2 per cent.

“Despite the prospects of rising interest rates, Summit Capital will not aggressively increase interest rates for our customers this year. We believe we have to maintain a relatively low interest rate to remain competitive in the challenging market prospects,” he said.