Kanbawza Bank (KBZ Bank) Limited, part of the KBZ Group of Companies, has opened a representative office in Bangkok, Thailand. The move makes them the first Myanmar bank to establish an international presence. This opening is the first step in KBZ Bank’s goal of becoming Myanmar’s foremost commercial presence in the Southeast Asian (ASEAN) region and internationally.
“We intend to start offering financial and advisory services as soon as possible to Myanmar individuals and businesses in Thailand and, naturally, Thai businesses interested in entering Myanmar. We hope they take advantage of our extensive knowledge of Myanmar’s financial markets and join the growing bilateral trade between our two countries,” says Than Cho, Senior Managing Director of KBZ Bank, who says that the new office in Thailand could play a key role in helping Myanmar support the entire ASEAN business community.
KBZ’s Bangkok office is expected to help the two countries reach their stated goal of doubling bilateral trade to $20 billion in 2017.
“The long-standing relationship between the two countries offers ample opportunities to collaborate across various sectors in the region. We have long been a leading financial institution in Myanmar, and are prepared to represent the country alongside our international industry peers,” said Than Cho. KBZ Bank also looks to explore opportunities to build relations with, and eventually cater to, the large number of Myanmar in Thailand – estimated to number about three million – when they return to their homeland. The representative office is headed by Zeyar Sein Htut, KBZ Bank’s newly-appointed country head for Thailand. As part of a strategy to continue expansion in Southeast Asia, the bank was recently granted a licence to open a representative office in Singapore.
