From left, Ronald Lee, Allen Gilstrap, Arturo Planell, Zayar Aung, Kyaw Hlaing Win and Tim Scheffmann at Myanmar Banking & Payments Conference (Photo-Khine Kyaw,Myanmar Eleven)

THE LARGE number of Myanmar people without bank accounts creates room for growth in the use of cards and e-wallets in the country over the next few years, bankers said at the recent Myanmar Banking and Payments Conference organised by Sphere Conferences.

Zayar Aung, head of cards at CB Bank, said Myanmar had enjoyed annual growth in cards usage over the past four years thanks to the growing number of automated teller machines (ATMs).

“Four years ago, we only had less than 100 ATMs. Now, there are nearly 3,000 ATMs across the country,” he told the Myanmar Banking and Payments Conference. “The daily cash out from those ATMs is more than one trillion kyats. So the card business is really growing here in terms of cash out, payments and the number of cards.”

However, Zayar Aung conceded that Myanmar is still a cash-dominated society and that trend would remain for at least a few more years.

“We have seen a rapid change here. People have now changed,” he said. “We have more than three million debit cards in Myanmar and there are a lot of opportunities for digital services.

“The larger the cash amount, the more opportunities there are for e-wallets and digital payments.”

Zayar Aung said customer education is vital to the growth of electronic payments, as banks and e-payment firms try to change customers’ behaviour from a cash preference to the adoption of digital payments.

Call for time

“We have to provide the information through different channels to educate the customers. But we do need time,” he said.

He said CB Bank used channels such as newspaper advertisements as well as social networks like Facebook, the bank’s website and internal circulation to educate its customers about the importance of digital payments.

Yet, he admitted that it was very difficult to educate even the staff of CB bank on digital products due to the skills shortage in Myanmar.

“First, we should try to understand our staff. Then they can educate their family members and the people in their surroundings. After that, we can expand awareness-raising to a wider group of people and thereby the community as a whole. We should do it step by step,” he said.

He believes customer satisfaction is key to further growth of cards and digital payments.

He suggested preparing for the conditions beyond the banks’ control.

“Some are under our control but some are not. For example, electricity and internet connectivity sometimes pose challenges to us. Anyhow, we need to make it happen by trying to make our customers happy,” he said.

“Your ATM may be down. But your customer service team needs to provide the customers with accurate information on where they can collect their money. Then they will feel happy.”

He urged local banks to build a strong team so that they can address such challenges as limited resources and insufficient knowledge.

Kyaw Hlaing Win, head of cards and payments at Asia Green Development Bank, shared a similar view.

“Internet penetration rate becomes very high. Everybody has a smart phone but there are thousands of people who do not have a bank account. It is a very good opportunity for cards and e-wallets to grow rapidly. Myanmar’s banking industry will also benefit a lot from the growth of digital payments,” he said.

He said AGD Bank has enjoyed 100 per cent growth in terms of cards usage within one year. Now the bank has more than 100,000 debit card users.

Kyaw Hlaing Win stressed the importance of innovation in the bank’s efforts to persuade its customers to use cards rather than cash. He is proud to say that the bank is the pioneer in introducing e-mobile banking and e-wallets in Myanmar.

“New products will be launched soon and e-payment will grow further. We expect 100 per cent growth and above this year. We are doing incentives for both merchants and card holders to use more card payments,” he said.