Bangkok: The Government Savings Bank (GSB) has announced a strategic shift to focus more on social impact rather than maximising profit, aiming to generate over 15 billion baht in positive societal impacts annually from 2024.
According to Thai News Agency, Mr. Vitai Ratanakorn, President of GSB, detailed the bank’s new objectives which include a wide range of initiatives across 10 key areas aimed at increasing the bank’s contribution to society. These areas encompass debt resolution and forgiveness, interest rate reductions, providing low-interest loans with relaxed approval criteria, supporting government economic policies, offering disaster relief, creating jobs, promoting community development, encouraging savings, supporting the transition to a low-carbon economy, and environmental care.
GSB’s revised strategy not only focuses on expanding social assistance but also aims to maintain a responsible profit margin. For 2024, the bank targets a profit of approximately 27 billion baht, a figure that surpasses
pre-COVID-19 profitability levels. This profit will contribute to government revenues, with the bank maintaining robust financial health, evidenced by an increased general provision reserve from 4 billion baht in 2019 to 80 billion baht in 2024.
The bank has also structured its operations around four subsidiary companies to better manage its resources and extend its social impact. These include Mee Mee Ngern Co., Ltd., which focuses on land loans and mortgages, Aree Asset Management Co., Ltd. for household debt resolution, Ngern Dee Dee Co., Ltd. to facilitate access to financing for grassroots populations, and GSB IT Management Co., Ltd., which enhances the bank’s digital and AI capabilities.
GSB reinforces its identity as a social bank, integrating creative business processes and creating shared value (CSV) that not only aims for appropriate profits but also broadens the scope of societal benefits. GSB encourages the public to engage with its services, emphasizing that becoming a customer aids in fosterin
g societal improvement.