KUALA LUMPUR (July 15): Malaysia’s largest bank by assets Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) has tied up with Kasikornbank Pcl, the fourth largest commercial bank in Thailand, to enhance their transaction banking services and to tap into business opportunities from the upcoming formation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC).

In a statement today, Maybank said the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was inked between Maybank group head of transaction banking John Wong and Kasikornbank's executive vice president Pipit Aneaknithi.

The signing ceremony was witnessed by Maybank group head of global banking Amirul Feisal Wan Zahir.

"The MoU will pave the way for a collaboration between both banks to tap into commercial activities which is expected to rise as a result of AEC.

"Under the MoU, Maybank and Kasikornbank will provide customers with transaction banking services in both Thailand and Malaysia," said Maybank.

The MoU will also see both banks provide advisory services to clients as well as the sharing of customer referrals to boost business for cross-border trade and investment, and to explore a collaborative framework in other areas of business, it added.

Amongst other areas targeted for collaboration are services provided by the branches, subsidiaries and affiliates of both banks, in the area of commercial banking such as account opening, payment and collection/cash management and trade finance services, said Maybank.

At the signing ceremony, Amirul said the ASEAN economy is expected to remain resilient and that in 2015 alone is expected to register a gross domestic product (GDP) of 5.2%.

"Amidst the anticipated opportunities available in the region and AEC from our perspective, it is timely for both Maybank and Kasikornbank to team up," he added.

"Our intention is to tap on each other’s network and strengths in our home markets to offer as seamless a banking experience as possible to our clients,” he added.

Further, given the wide range of financial services which both banks are involved in, Amirul foresees there will be further opportunities in other areas of cooperation in the future.

“As two strong founders of the AEC, Malaysia and Thailand share abundant business connectivity, evidenced by the cross-border trade volume of US$28 billion. Such trade and investment opportunities are going to be stimulated further by the AEC, where there will be cross-border movement of the supply chain,” said Pipit.

At the government-to-government level, there are also many projects to support in the evolving business landscape such as "the rubber city project" in Kedah and Songkhla, the creation of a special economic zone in Thailand, and the rail and road connectivity along the border project, he added.

Pipit anticipates the partnership will pave the way for some innovative AEC-unique products and services such as the ringgit/Thai baht settlement and also the sharing of customer referral to boost business for cross-border trade and investment.