Thailand’s KBank in talks to buy Vietnam lender in up to $1bn deal: media

Thailand’s second-biggest lender Kasikornbank, also called KBank, is in talks to acquire consumer finance provider Home Credit Vietnam as part of its ASEAN business expansion, Bangkok Post reported on Monday. Home Credit Vietnam is part of the Netherlands-headquartered non-bank financial institution Home Credit Group. It started operations in Vietnam in 2008 and has grown to employ 6,000 staff serving 12 million customers, according to its website. Home Credit Group plans to sell its businesses across ASEAN, Bangkok Post quoted KBank executive vice-president Pattarapong Kanhasuwan as saying. Pattarapong said for the Vietnamese market, KBank focuses its growth on three core areas -- business scale, customer base, and competitiveness.