Thailand

Lu International partners with KASIKORNBANK to launch FinVest for retail investors in Thailand

Lu International (Singapore) Financial Asset Exchange Pte. Ltd. (Lu International), a subsidiary of China's leading technology-empowered personal financial services platform Lufax Holding, and KASIKORNBANK, leader in digital banking and one of Thailand's largest banks, has announced the launch of FinVest, an online wealth management platform.

The new digital investment platform is aimed to help retail investors in Thailand gain access to a full spectrum of onshore and offshore investment products at a low minimum investment amount through the extensive network and relationships brought by Lu International, and the local expertise offered by KASIKORNBANK, Lu International said in a press release.

Greg Gibb, CEO, Lufax Holding, said: “Thailand is one of the fastest growing markets in Southeast Asia and continues to see rapid wealth growth and economic development. Partnerships and the sharing of technology know-how are defining the financial industry across the region, making significant improvements to the quality of service and offerings to clients. Through the collective capabilities of Lu International and KASIKORNBANK, investors now have access to international investment opportunities that have previously only been available to a select few.”

Additionally, FinVest offers a curated client experience, including an enhanced design as well as user-friendly and mobile-friendly screen flows. In designing the mobile app, Lu International and KASIKORNBANK prioritise the needs of retail investors. These include the ability to make informed investment decisions and the access to relevant investment knowledge provided by Lu International and KASIKORNBANK in collaboration with Robowealth, a wealth-tech and investment specialist and investment solutions provider in Thailand. The ultimate goal of this collaboration is to make sure of the best investment journey to all investors.

Kit Wong, CEO, Lu International, said: “Digital technology is rapidly changing the way investors use financial services. They are increasingly using digital channels to purchase financial products and invest. FinVest offers clients the convenience, efficiency, intelligence, and ease of use through a personalised online wealth management platform that will help Thailand and its economy stay at the forefront of the digital financial revolution taking place across the region.”

Patchara Samalapa, President, KASIKORNBANK, said: “In 2020, Thailand's total outstanding capital market value is worth around 44 trillion baht. Of this amount, investment in mutual funds totals 4.8 trillion baht or around 10 percent. Of late, the younger generation has shown increasing interest in mutual funds, preferring to conduct transactions via digital channels and seeking products related to Thai and foreign equity instruments. Moreover, open-architecture investment is growing every year. Development of the FinVest digital platform will help enhance investment potential for Thai retail investors, allowing them to directly invest in global mutual funds via FinVest.”

“FinVest marks a cooperative effort towards digital technology development; KASIKORNBANK, which has extensive digital banking expertise; Lu International -- a Singapore-based company under Lufax Holding, which is an associate of Ping An Group -- a large Chinese company with a team of world-class experts well-versed in investment technology; and Robowealth Mutual Fund Brokerage Securities Co., Ltd., an expert in wealth tech, ensuring that the FinVest platform is in alignment with the Thai capital market under the supervision of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Thailand. This cooperation also reinforces KASIKORNBANK's status as a complete banking service provider, based on a combination of its own digital banking expertise and that of the world's leading partners and fintech experts, to ensure that KASIKORNBANK is everywhere around you,” Samalapa continued.

FinVest seamlessly caters to local investors with round-the-clock digital access to comprehensive information about their accounts, market insights and intelligence relevant to their portfolio, while opening the door to premium onshore and offshore wealth management products with an approximate minimum investment amount of USD35 / THB1,000 with no additional account opening or closing fees. The platform also adopts strict Know Your Product (KYP) and Know Your Customer (KYC) compliance procedures, alongside an Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and an anti-fraud system, to meet regulatory requirements.

Lu International continues to strengthen its network via strategic partnership in collaboration with local financial institutions leveraging its technology and industry know-how across Southeast Asia as part of its expansion to capitalise on wealth management digitisation and growth opportunities for financial services in some of the world's up and coming economies.