MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: CIMB Bank Philippines, Zoloz Partner on e-KYC in Effort to Boost Digital Financial Services, Inclusion

CIMB Bank Philippines, a digital banking unit of Malaysia-based CIMB Group Holdings, recently announced a partnership with China-based Zoloz to leverage its electronic know-your-customer (e-KYC) technology to simplify the bank’s verification of customers’ identities and otherwise create an “enhanced payment experience.” Zoloz, which is owned by China’s Ant Group, offers products that allow users to access online accounts via images of identification cards and biometric data.

CIMB Bank Philippines CEO Vijay Manoharan reportedly said, “The next phase of our growth strategy is to strengthen our platform-banking model, embed our solutions to more services and platforms, and make our services an integral part of more Filipinos’ lives – whether that’s to save for their future, get easy access to loans or credit, or meet their insurance needs for protection. Zoloz, with its cloud-based, fully-automated, and cost-effective e-KYC solution, is the right fit to support our strategy.”

Chen Jidong, the General Manager of Zoloz, reportedly stated, “We are excited to collaborate with CIMB Bank Philippines to promote financial inclusion and bring benefits to the unbanked community in the country.”

Through January 2022, since CIMB Bank Philippines was established in 2018, it has on-boarded 5.1 million customers, including 1 million borrowers. As of 2020, CIMB Group, whose name derives from Commerce International Merchant Bankers Berhad, reports total assets of MYR 602 billion (USD 144 billion), customer deposits totaling MYR 411 billion (USD 98 billion) and gross loans of MYR 366 billion (USD 87 billion). For the year, the group reported return on equity of 2.1 percent and return on assets of 0.2 percent. CIMB Group offers financial services in 13 countries in Asia plus the UK.

Zoloz has 120 employees in China, Singapore and the US. Its customers reach 200 million users. Ant Group is a financial technology company that was founded in 2004 and is 33-percent owned by Alibaba Group, a Chinese firm specializing in e-commerce. Among Ant Group’s units is Alipay, an online platform that provides financial services including payments, wealth management, insurance and microloans. The goal of Ant Group is “for everyone to enjoy inclusive, sustainable financial services; to provide every small business with a level playing field to develop and grow; and to make all aspects of digital life accessible – anytime, anywhere, through open collaboration with partners.” Financial data on the group may be sought via https://www.antgroup.com/en/ir/notices.

By Sheen Gupta, Research Associate

Sources and Additional Resources

Journal Online (Philippines) article
https://journal.com.ph/cimb-bank-philippines-collaborates-with-zoloz-to-strengthen-its-digital-banking-services-with-advanced-ekyc-solution/

CIMB Bank Philippines homepage
https://www.cimbbank.com.ph

CIMB Group annual reports
https://www.cimb.com/en/investor-relations/annual-reports.html

Zoloz homepage
https://www.zoloz.com/

LinkedIn profile of Zoloz
https://www.linkedin.com/company/zoloz/

Ant Group homepage
https://www.antgroup.com/

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