Siam Commercial Bank
Of all the sectors to have been crushed by the pandemic, SMEs have probably felt the most pain.
That’s partly because of the disproportionate role SMEs play in the Thai economy: they account for 90% of all businesses in Thailand and more than half of the jobs, while 70% of their production is sold domestically. That makes them the single most important engine of the economy – and among the first to suffer during an economic downturn.
When it comes to supporting the SME sector through tough times, few banks have done better than Siam Commercial Bank, Thailand’s oldest local bank.
SCB responded to the crisis with various support measures for its customers, for example deferring loan repayments for SMEs affected by the pandemic, as well as providing soft loans worth a total of Bt20 billion ($600 million) for approximately 2,000 SMEs.
SCB offered special loans for new and existing SME customers with an interest rate of 2% for the first two years and a repayment period of up to 10 years.
Providing financial support to its SME customers is just one area where SCB excels.