Krungthai Card (KTC), a leading credit card issuer, expects the government's Easy E-Receipt tax rebate programme to help boost credit card spending in the first quarter of this year despite sluggish domestic consumption.
Since the beginning of the year, KTC's card spending has grown by around 10% year-on-year, partly supported by the government's reinstated tax rebate scheme and the Chinese New Year festival, according to KTC's president and chief executive Pittaya Vorapanyasakul.
The Easy E-Receipt programme, which allows eligible purchases of up to 50,000 baht to be deducted against personal income tax, began on Jan 16 and will run until Feb 28.
Ms Pittaya noted that the spending growth has been driven by both middle- and upper-income cardholders. However, the increase in spending remains selective, reflecting the purchasing power of each customer segment.
"Credit cardholders whose purchasing power has not yet fully recovered due to the uneven economic recovery tend to make smaller-ticket purchases," she said.
"Despite the uneven recovery of the [Thai] economy and relatively poor domestic consumption, KTC has still recorded positive growth in card spending. The company remains confident of achieving its target of 10% spending growth for the first quarter."
This year, KTC aims to issue 250,000 new credit cards and achieve 10% year-on-year growth in card spending.
As part of its strategic initiatives, KTC on Monday introduced its new head of information technology (IT), Wilaiwan Nopparat, who will oversee the company's digital transformation programme and the restructuring of its core payment system, commencing this year. Through this transformation, KTC aims to enhance its technological capabilities to support sustainable business expansion in the long term.
Enhanced technology capabilities will enable the company to better identify and acquire target customer groups, improve asset quality management, and expand its sustainable loan portfolio over time.
According to Ms Pittaya, in the rapidly evolving digital era, consumer behaviour is changing quickly, requiring the company to stay agile to meet clients' needs. KTC plans to strengthen its infrastructure across people, processes and digital technology, with a particular focus on artificial intelligence.
This year, KTC has allocated a total budget of 1 billion baht for its digital transformation programme. The initiative will enable the company to provide financial products and services that align more closely with customer needs while ensuring stronger security amid rising cyber-risks, Ms Pittaya added.
