This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on November 19, 2015.
KUALA LUMPUR: CIMB Group Holdings Bhd has teamed up with the Philippines’ largest telecommunications company, Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co (PLDT), to offer digital financial offerings and solutions for customers in the Philippines and across Asean.
In a statement yesterday, the country’s second-largest lender said its unit CIMB Group Sdn Bhd had signed a strategic collaboration agreement with PLDT’s wireless services provider, Smart Communications Inc, and its wholly-owned digital unit, Voyager Innovations Inc, for the purpose.
“This partnership comes at an opportune time when the roles of telecommunications providers and banks are increasingly converging. Through this partnership, we are able to offer innovative and differentiated digital banking and financial technology solutions in the Philippines and across Asean,” CIMB group chief executive officer Tengku Datuk Zafrul Aziz said.
Manuel V Pangilinan, chairman of PLDT, Smart and Voyager, said the collaboration is premised on the unique capabilities and positions of the partners.