BNI to Enter the Digital Bank Through Mini Bank Acquisition

Another top tier bank is to enter the digital business by acquireing a mini bank. Rumor has it, PT Bank Negara Indonesia Tbk (IDX: BBNI) is to acquire Bank Mayora, a BUKU II bank with less than IDR 2 trillion core capital.

On CNBC, BNI's President Director, Royke Tumilaar has confirmed the company's plan to acquire a bank. He said the company had finalized the initial process, but the bank name is still undisclosed.

"We have reached an initial agreement for a bank acquisition with a strong business ecosystem to be transformed into a digital bank," Royke said at a press conference.

He said, the digital bank is to target the MSME segment and collaborate with experienced strategic partners to develop financial technology. Royke said that technology plays an important role in digital bank management, and capable to drive more efficient operational costs than conventional banks.

In general note, Bank Mayora is a retail and consumer bank that offers a variety of financial products, ranging from loans and deposits. Some of the loan products offered include Vehicle Loans (KKB), Multi-Use Loans (KMG), and Home Ownership Loans (KPR).

Meanwhile, BNI engaged in the consumer and business segments, both through savings, deposit and credit products. The bank with a "46" logo has a strong association as a widely used banking product by students/universities.

Quoting from Investor.id, Royke had given a sign that the company would not be transformed 100% into a digital bank without branch offices, instead will develop in terms of services, business processes, and products.

He said, apart from having fairly strong legacy in Indonesia, the Government as BNI's majority shareholder demand the bank to focus on strengthening its position further as an international bank or global bank

The battle over SME market

Throughout this year, the Indonesian banking sector has been crowded with the launch of digital banking services to corporate actions, seeking for strategic partners. Bank Jago, BCA Digital, and Bank Neo Commerce have implemented the business in this first semester.

While several other banks are looking for strategic investors to raise capital, the media conglomerate PT Elang Mahkota Teknologi Tbk (IDX: EMTK) recently acquired 93% of Bank Fama's shares. Moreover, Kredivo has gradually acquired the shares of Bank Bisnis Internasional until eventually dominating with 40% ownership.

The corporate action is being pursued to meet the core capital obligation of IDR 2 trillion by the end of this year as stated in POJK No. 12.

Almost all of the banks are busy targeting the MSME segment amidst a surge in digital acceleration during the Covid-19 pandemic. Apart from being the foundation of the Indonesian economy, MSME is a segment with certain difficulties to capital access and has not been fully digitized.

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This is a reason for digital banks to cooperate with platforms with a broad customer base and service ecosystem. That way, they can easily distribute financing products and loans using this leverage.

Based on data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), there were 65.5 million MSMEs in 2019, an increase of 1.98% from 64.2 million in 2018. Meanwhile, only about 8 million or 13% of MSMEs are integrated or utilize digital technology.

–Original article is in Indonesian, translated by Kristin Siagian