Kasikornbank has made a $50m strategic investment in Thai ride-hailing business Grab, as it expands its reach on Southeast Asia’s FinTech market.
Grab is set to launch a new portfolio of FinTech services through the partnership, including a mobile payment application called GrabPay due to be launched in 2019.
The GrabPay platform allows for digital and QR-enabled payments and the transfer of funds. Features from KBank’s K PLUS app and the Grab app will be integrated across both platforms. The partnership will also offer other products, including loans and access to Grab for Business.
Grab’s Financial arm launched in March 2018 has expanded its mobile wallets to all ASEAN- 6 countries including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and Philippines.
The company is currently holding an ongoing fundraising round, which has been backed by Toyota Motor Corporation, Microsoft Corp, Booking Holdings, Hyundai Motor Group and Oppenheimer Funds among others.
“In 2018, Grab Financial has established itself as Southeast Asia’s leading fintech platform, both in terms of monthly active users and total payments volume,” said Grab Financial senior managing director Reuben Lai.
“By opening up our platform, we have attracted many of the leading players in the financial services industry and driven exponential growth for our business.”
Last year the Thailand-based Kasikornbank launched a $29m FinTech-focused venture capital fund.
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