Kanbawza Bank (KBZ) unveiled a new One-Stop SME banking centre to provide greater financial inclusion in Yangon

16 มีนาคม 2561

YANGON, MYANMAR, 7 MARCH 2018 – KBZ Bank have unveiled a new One-Stop SME Banking Center (OSBC) offering a range of services to meet the needs of growing businesses, such as improving access to finance and financial literacy.

KBZ Bank supports SMEs with comprehensive, holistic solutions and the KBZ One-Stop SME Banking Centre will be vital to improving the banking experience by facilitating the expansion of enterprises across industries, sectors and regions of Myanmar. It will operate as a world-class hub for information, staffed with banking experts who act as trusted advisors on all aspects of SME business needs.

Located at Yangon City St John shopping mall, conveniently close to the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMFCCI) building, KBZ SME Relationship Managers at the centre will listen actively to customers’ business concerns, expectations and challenges. Based on their industry, cash flow projection and expansion plan, KBZ Bank can offer structured solutions and advice, tailored to each individual business.

 

The KBZ Bank SME OSBC offers the following under one roof:

•Access to all KBZ Bank core products and services, including: deposit, credit, cash management and transaction banking products

•Business consulting and matching

•SME entrepreneur and financial literacy training

•Dedicated government SME advice and services

 

Small and medium sized businesses are vital to all economies, but especially to developing countries like Myanmar, which have big income discrepancies between the rich and the poor, and gender imbalances.

Daw Yi Yi Khaing, Director of Ministry of Industry, Department of SMEs Development said, “SMEs are key employers of women of the SME retail sector in Myanmar. With focus on supporting female-led businesses, promoting gender equality and empowering women SMEs, we aim to extend financial products and expertise to those who wouldn’t previously had access to them.”

U Zaw Lin Aung, Managing Director & Head of KBZ SME Banking Department, explained, “To improve access to finance and build knowledge and capacity for SMEs, we are providing business centric tailored solutions and offering financial literacy training to our customers and their employees. Our Relationship Managers will offer advice and support for all SMEs to facilitate growth and mitigate risk. The goal is to help SMEs grow from micro to small, and from small to medium. This would offer financial inclusion for all businesses by allowing them to benefit from KBZ SME banking’s ‘total solution’ approach at the One-Stop SME Banking Center.”

SMEs are a major contributor for jobs, innovation and savings investment for the country.

German international development agency GIZ provided insight to KBZ Bank during the inception process for the center. “The financial literacy of typical SME customers in Myanmar is recognized as generally low and many customers are reluctant to deal with banks. We, as a team of GIZ consultants, support KBZ Bank in the delivery of SME capacity building across the country. This training will be piloted through the new Center,” said Mr Armin Hoffman, Program Director GIZ Myanmar.

SMEs are also nurseries for businesses poised to grow into the larger firms of the future. With the right support, SMEs can be inspiring success stories. KBZ SME client, and KBZ entrepreneur award winner, U Ngwe Tun, founder of the social enterprise Genius Shan Highlands Coffee, said: “Being nurtured and guided in your early years as an entrepreneurial business can mean the difference between success and failure. I continue to seek SME Banking services through KBZ Bank for access to finance but also for advice and counsel to aid my business through its next steps as we grow. A one-stop SME banking centre will be very useful to all entrepreneurs and owners who are finding their feet”.

The opening ceremony for the KBZ One-Stop SME Banking Center was held in the morning of Wednesday 7 March 2018 and has begun serving clients the same day.

 

(Myanmar Business Today: https://www.mmbiztoday.com/articles/kbz-bank-opens-one-stop-sme-banking-center-provide-greater-financial-inclusion )