The partners say Yuemmai will transform the face of the mobile phone market, contributing to fast-changing and modern lifestyles. It is targeting 100,000 rented mobile phones yearly.

Sutikiat Kittipattrakul, the CEO of Yuemmai (Thailand) Ltd, said Gold Elite Paris (Thailand) Co Ltd will partner with SCI Electric Plc to operate the Yuemmai brand under Yuemmai (Thailand) Co Ltd.

Sutikiat said he has witnessed a growing change in the behaviour of today’s consumers, with mobile phone users tending to possess a cellphone for more than two years. Consumers hesitate to switch to a new device due to several reasons, including the low resale rate and the high price of a cell phone. The Yuemmai mobile rental service can address these issues, and is projected to gain rapid popularity and soon emerge as the first choice as consumers make a purchasing decision, according to a company media release on Tuesday. Its loan rate is estimated at 100,000 devices per year.

“Despite several limitations that slow down the rate of cell phone purchases, everyone prefers a new smartphone and would want to keep up with the latest trend and technology. This is where Yuemmai comes in,” said Sutikiat.

“Yuemmai will transform the face of the smartphone market and go a long way to meeting consumers’ needs, as they will no longer have to pay a large amount of money for mobile phones or put up with their old devices. It will also resolve the low resale rate in the market. We are greatly confident that with more than 12 years of experiences in the cell phone business, we will be able to answer consumers’ demands.”

Yuemmai is a crucial advancement in the use of mobile phones in Thailand as it in sync with the new generation’s lifestyles, according to the release. Yuemmai’s marketing slogan is “Smarter and More Desirable”, and will feature the latest and most popular smartphone brands, which could be easily borrowed through “Yuemmai” application, available for download on both iOS and Android.

The price starts at Bt30 per day , or Bt900 monthly for a 12-month contract. A deposit is required, priced at Bt575 per month with an all-inclusive free monthly call and internet package.

Each “borrower” will receive a brand-new device wrapped in a box. Yuemmai service comes with an assurance that covers loss, theft, and damage. It also offers a free delivering service, handing over the item to your doorstep, as well as a free data transferring service guaranteed with 100% safety and countless privileges and promotions in collaboration with stores and restaurants.

Yuemmai aims to target new generations, university students, office workers, and those seeking a new option for using smartphones, including corporate customers who use mobile phones in their businesses or offer phones to their employees.

The company is issuing 130 million new shares for trade in the market for alternative investment or mai on August 1, 2019, Phillip Securities Co Ltd’s managing director of investment banking Vicha Tomana, who is Kumwell Corporation Plc’s underwriter, said on Monday.

He added that the price of Bt1.10 per share was based on the company’s price earnings ratio or P/E ratio, which is calculated from its net profit from the second quarter of the year 2018 to the first quarter of 2019.

Kumwell Corporation Plc’s chief executive officer Boonsak Keatcharoonlert said that the company aimed to raise capital of Bt143 million from this IPO to develop its new plant to produce grounding rods worth Bt68 million, with Bt10 million being used to renovate its existing plant, Bt8 million going into research and development of new products and the remaining Bt20 million for use as cash flow.

With the investment plan, the company expects its total revenue will growth by double digits a year, beating the earlier growth average of seven and ten per cent a year, he said.

In the first six months of 2019, SCB’s existing NPLs from SMEs stood at 7.8 per cent, with new NPLs at around 0.75 per cent, said SME banking officer Pikun Srimahunt at a press conference on Monday.

“Our aim is to keep NPL levels at below 8 per cent through 2019,” she said.

However, Pikun admitted that SMEs faced intense competition from large corporations both locally and overseas in the first half of 2019.

In the first quarter, wholesale business and SME loans contracted by 1.2 per cent year on year, but NPLs increased by 7.4 per cent, according to TMB Analytics.

“Wholesale SMEs face worrying financial issues as they are being out-competed by large businesses that offer cheaper prices by economies of scale,” said TMB Analytics chief Naris Sathapholdeja during a separate interview.

Moreover, SMEs are expected to struggle even further if the incoming government implements its campaign promise to hike the minimum wage to Bt400, according to Supant Mongkolsuthree, chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries.

The manufacturing sector representative stated that SMEs will struggle to compete with big businesses as a rise in the minimum wage will increase their costs disproportionately when compared to large corporations.

However, Pikun contends that the increase in the minimum wage to Bt400 will not present a significant obstacle for SMEs if they are able to utilise new technologies and adjust their prices in accordance with their costs.

“The real challenge for SMEs, which has been reflected in the NPL levels, is their inability to diversify their customer base and make use of new technology to cut costs and increase online visibility,” Pikun said.

For example, SMEs which only rely on exports to China will struggle as the US-China trade spat continues. Meanwhile, SMEs which are able to diversify their exports to other regions such as the CLMV (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam) bloc are more likely to perform better, she explained.

Given the rising level of bad loans, SCB has developed a hands-on approach to manage their NPL levels by establishing an SME Ecosystem to support their clients and promote more sustainable business practices.

“The biggest challenge facing SMEs is their ability to adapt to technological change and diversify their customer segments to mitigate risks,” Pikun claimed.

Hence, the bank will start monitoring their clients more closely and notify clients that are at risk of creating NPLs.

In our SME Ecosystem, she stated, we offer services with partners to put these enterprises on e-commerce platforms such as Amazon and make their businesses visible on Google Maps by using Google My Business.

Furthermore, the bank has established the SCB SME Academy, which will offer programmes to train these enterprises throughout the country free of charge. The academy also has a mentor programme to match SMEs together and exchange valuable business know-how.

The partnership will help boost the company’s capability and opportunity in the solar roof business in Thailand. The cooperation will be conducted in the form of a joint venture, in which SPCG will hold 35 per cent of total shares, MUL (35 per cent), PEA Encom (20 per cent) and Kyocera at 10 per cent. It will be set up on July 31, this year.

Wandee Khunchornyakong Juljarern, chairwoman and CEO of SPCG Plc, said the joint venture will produce solar roof systems amounting to 500 megawatts in capacity a year. It will first cater to the company’s existing customers, of which about are 1,000 factory operators. About 100 customers have shown interest in installing solar roof systems that require a total capacity of about 50 megawatts and each will have a system not exceeding one megawatt in capacity.

“One of 12 policies the government will announce to parliament this Thursday (July 25) is the promotion of alternative energy with the use of ‘net-metering’ system. The policy will lead to more installations of solar roof-top panels by the public sector while private firms will also generate their own power and sell the remaining power to the system. As such, the government needs not resort to solar subsidies to stimulate solar power consumption in the private and public sector,” said Wandee.

Speaking to media on his first day in office, Ratchakitprakan identified short-term accommodation reform and growing tourism in secondary cities as a priority area for the Tourism and Sports Ministry.

“We look forward to working closely with the new government and Minister Ratchakitprakan on growing and diversifying Thailand’s tourism industry,” Airbnb’s head of Public Policy for Southeast Asia Mich Goh said.

“We particularly welcome the minister’s commitment to prioritising short-term accommodation reform in Thailand. It is recognition that more travellers from Thailand and abroad are choosing to stay in short-term accommodation such as Airbnb listings, and that the rules need to keep pace.

“While the Airbnb community in Thailand already makes a significant contribution to the tourism industry and economy, we believe that contribution could be even greater.

“Clear and innovative rules for short-term accommodation would create more opportunities for Thai hospitality entrepreneurs and help generate more income for local communities, especially those in secondary provinces. Airbnb stands ready to work with the Government in the coming months on developing clear, innovative rules for short-term accommodation in Thailand.”

Airbnb has already partnered with the Ministry of Interior’s Department of Local Administration to train local provincial officials on hospitality, hosting and compliance standards. Airbnb has also partnered with the state-owned Government Savings Bank to help promote and empower Thai hospitality entrepreneurs through flexible-interest rate loans and training programmes.

According to data released in June, Airbnb’s host and guest community generated over Bt33.8 billion in estimated direct economic impact in Thailand in 2018. The data also found that 80 per cent of local Airbnb hosts say they recommend restaurants and cafes to guests, and on average Airbnb guests in Thailand say 46 per cent of their spending occurs in the neighbourhood where they stay.

The projects, worth a total of Bt65 million, involve the installations of Carpet Tiles and Axminster carpet in four organizations, covering a combined area of 89,700 square meters. The company has also developed carpet tiles made from recycled plastic bottles, in line with environmental concerns and the goal of sustainable growth.

Walliwan Varavarn, the company’s chief executive officer, said the company’s second half performance will surpass that of the first half , thanks to the new projects.

One of which is the installation of special design carpet tiles at the new parliament buildings between September to November, covering the chamber of the House of Representatives (MPs), the Senate chamber and the prayer room, totalling 14,000 square metres.

Another is the laying of carpet tiles in the new terminal area of Suvarnabhumi Airport, covering an area of 52,000 square metres, from the fourth quarter of this year to the first quarter of 2020.

The other two projects involve work for the private sector: the installation of special design carpet tiles at the headquarter of Siam Commercial Bank and its branch offices, covering an area of 15,000 square metres, from the fourth quarter of 2019 to the second quarter of 2020; and the installation of Axminster carpet at Phuket Fantasea, covering the theatre and the restaurant, from September 2019 onwards.

For the company’s carpet under the “Carpet Inter” brand, the firm is focusing on large offices and organisations that give importance to preserving natural resources and the environment.

Having posted an over 10 per cent growth in sales last year, the company is looking to a more than 15 per cent increase in 2019, with domestic and overseas sales contributing at 35 per cent and 65 per cent respectively.

“At present, organisations are paying more attention to environmental concerns. This year, the company will launch EcoSoft® carpet tiles, made from recycled plastic bottles. The new product is highly flexible, absorbs sound better than PVC rubber in older models, and also helps energy, especially in air-conditioned premises. It has received good responses with orders coming in from both the public and private sectors,” Walliwan said.

In the quarter, the bank generated pre-provision operating profit (PPOP) of Bt4.72 billion, up 25 per cent quarter on quarter, driven by continued growth in net interest income (NII) and higher non-interest income (Non-NII), as well as well-delivered operating efficiency. TMB monitored its asset quality closely and continued to improve the quality of its loan portfolio with the bank setting aside Bt2.49 billion of provision for the second quarter.

Piti said in terms of balance sheet growth, the bank focused on expanding its deposit base through retail customer segment. The bank has grown new loans selectively and also continued to de-risk its current loan portfolio to improve quality, aimed at strengthening its financial position in support of potential merger transactions.

Robust growth in retail deposit was reported for first six months of this year, expanding by Bt3.4 billion or up 0.8 per cent from the first half of 2018, led by flagship products such as transactional deposit – TMB All Free, non-transactional deposit – TMB No Fixed and a digital saving, ME Save by TMB which grew +3.3 per cent, +1.7 per cent and +4.8 per cent YTD.

Nonetheless, due to an Bt4.2 billion outflow from commercial deposit , total deposit dropped to Bt649 billion, compared to Bt650 billion at the end of last year.

In regard to lending, total loan outstanding at the end of the second quarter sat at Bt680 billion, down from Bt686 billion at the end of last year, mainly due to loan repayments from large commercial customers in conjunction with the result of de-risking activities, especially in the medium- sized SME segment.

Retail loan portfolio, on the other hand, grew from the previous quarter, boosted by mortgage lending.

For the first six months, the bank saw a 6.4 per cent growth in retail loans and a 7.7 per cent rise in mortgage. In addition, the new booking of small SMEs remained on a gradual recovery as the bank remained selective in approving new loans.

The bank posted growth in total revenue, showing Net Interest Income (NII) of Bt6.34 billion, a 1.7 per cent increase from the first quarter while NIM stood at 2.90 per cent, compared to 2.89 per cent in the first quarter of this year. Non-interest income was Bt2.54 billion, up 11.8 per cent as fee income started to recover, especially in mutual funds.

Total operating income came to Bt8.89 billion, up 4.4 per cent quarter on quarter. Meanwhile, total operating expenses was Bt4.21 billion, down 11.1 per cent from the first quarter in which there was a one-time set-up of employee retirement benefit according to the revision of the Thai Labor Protection Act.

Thanks to higher revenue and lower operating expenses, pre-provision operating profit (PPOP) increased to Bt4.72 billion or 24.5 per cent. After the Bt2.49 billion provision and tax, net profit stood at Bt1.91 billion or an increase of 21.4 per cent.

In terms of asset quality, the bank reported a NPL ratio of 2.74 per cent, down from 2.81 per cent in the previous quarter while NPL coverage ratio, which reflects loan-loss absorption ability, stayed at 140 per cent.

In the quarter, the bank maintained its 2019 asset quality targets with NPL ratio of less than 2.9 per cent and NPL coverage ratio of above 140 per cent.

The firm is inviting users to experience e-wallet security technology, which the company has co-developed with Zoloz, the world’s leading biometrics-based real identity verification and authentication technology provider. With Zoloz technology, TrueMoney has set a new benchmark for e-wallet security and allowed a more secure and easily accessible digital security experience for all, the company said.

TrueMoney is one of Thailand’s e-wallet providers which joined the Bank of Thailand’s (BoT) regulatory sandbox project to deploy biometric facial recognition technology for e-KYC to verify user’s identity since March.

Biometric facial recognition is one of the five crucial technologies being implemented under BoT’s regulatory sandbox. The company said its biometric facial e-KYC will offer more convenience and reduce complexity in identity verification and authentication processes, eliminating the problem of forgetting passwords as well as mitigating risk and fraud from grey business and money laundering. Furthermore, TrueMoney’s new e-KYC technology has set a high-level security-standard benchmark for the country’s e-financial industry while offering convenience and accessibility as users can verify and authenticate their identity in their e-wallet account through only a few easy steps at all 7-Eleven stores soon.

“Besides our mission to enable everyone to access innovative financial services and leading them to better lives, TrueMoney is committed to explore, invest and deploy the world’s best available security technology on our platform as we believe that user confidence and system credibility is at the heart of the e-financial business,” said Monsinee Nakapanant, co-president, Ascend Money Co, Ltd. “We’ve therefore collaborated with the world’s leading biometrics-based real identity verification and authentication technology provider like Zoloz to bring this state-of-the-art technology to Thai e-wallet users and apply it at an easily accessible venue like 7-Eleven. TrueMoney has worked closely with BoT on this project and we’re proud to help set a new benchmark for e-wallet security while enhancing the national e-KYC standard. Our biometric facial recognition system is expected to be out of BoT’s regulatory sandbox and available at all 7-Eleven branches very soon,” Monsinee said.

“Many of the world’s leading tech companies nowadays utilise facial recognition technology to verify their staff identity to minimise threats and protect them from intruders. Similar to TrueMoney, we deploy this technology and simplify it for our users through an easy smartphone function like taking a selfie. Together with the top biometric technology, which offers up to 99.99 per cent accuracy and fast ID card database verification of less than three seconds, users can now ensure that they’re well protected with top-level security,” Monsinee said.

“TrueMoney understands that today there are many consumers who are well aware of the latest technology and its applications, they are described as novices but want to apply technology to enhance their daily lives. But there are also cybercriminals and fraudsters who adapt to new technology with malicious intent. With our new biometric facial recognition e-KYC system, we help mitigate risks associated with crimes such as harassment, money laundering and grey business, while increasing confidence among e-wallet users,” Monsinee added.