Krungsri launches Open Banking API for seamless customer experience & digital transformation

Krungsri (Bank of Ayudhya PCL and its business units) and IBM (NYSE: IBM)  launched the Open API Platform, marking a significant milestone along the digital transformation journey with a commitment to the best experience for its customers and partners. The Open API Platform developed by IBM Services will enable anywhere, anytime banking-as-a-service experience, helping Krungsri and its ecosystem easily connect to facilitate business and information interchange, product development, business models and new ways of working, be it at branches, on the ATM network, through mobile banking services, or with third-party partners. 

Seiichiro Akita, Krungsri President and Chief Executive Officer, said “The COVID-19 outbreak has abruptly accelerated the digital transformation journey across businesses of all sizes. From now on, customer journeys including onboarding, card, payment, insurance or securities should extend to include seamless location-based services that can be swiftly adopted to customers’ changing preferences and lives in the new normal, be it at their banks, ATMs, retail stores, telecom services provider, healthcare provider or insurer. The Open Banking API Platform is making this possible.”

The Open API Platform today sets the stage for creating a robust, secure and easy-to-connect system that will drive Krungsri’s partner ecosystem growth. Making life simple for customers in getting a mortgage, auto loan, life insurance or planning retirement with just a few clicks away, Krungsri and partners will provide quotes, service offerings and estimates swiftly and directly to customers in the comfort of their home. Running on Red Hat’s OpenShift platform, Krungsri’s customers can also firmly rely on the global security, data privacy and regulatory-compliant standards as well as world-class open-source technology.

Patama Chantaruck, VP for Indochina Expansion and Managing Director of IBM Thailand, said “IBM is proud to be the trusted and long-term partner who has continuously supported Krungsri to build out its future and embrace digital transformation. The Open Banking API Platform will build resiliency and agility for Krungsri and its networks, which become more crucial than ever in today’s unprecedented challenges presented by COVID-19.”

Voranuch Dejakaisaya, Krungsri Chief Information and Operations Officer, added that “The partnership with IBM on Open API Platform gives both Krungsri and our partners much needed agility and efficiency resulting from removal of complex legacy integrations and standardizations of all processes. Open technology and API platform set the foundation for the hybrid cloud and AI driven future of banking industry, and will benefit our customers not just today but for years to come.”

Given traditional business practices, most financial institutions have operated in product centric siloes and over the years have accumulated significant technical debt. This is reflected in their highly customized, complex architectures and non-standard processes and data. These factors serve as significant roadblocks to increased digitization and innovation, rapid automation and straight-through processing, which in turn impacts customer experience, go-to-market speed, operational cost, while increasing delivery and operating risk.

Thanks to these kinds of improvements, innovation and enhanced customer experience, Krungsri is taking its digital transformation journey to the next level while reinforcing its leadership in Thailand’s digital banking market.