Siam Commercial has officially launched its Myanmar subsidiary, Siam Commercial Bank Myanmar. “This development is an important jigsaw piece in SCB accomplishing its strategic expansion of its overseas network,” said Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) president Sarut Ruttanaporn in a statement. He said SBC will leverage its branch network to facilitate trade and investment between the two countries. “With its increasing importance as a regionally strategic country, Myanmar has become one of the top destinations attracting investors from around the world.”

In addition to increased Thai investment, trade between Thailand and Myanmar has increased steadily in recent years, thanks in part to new physical, political and financial infrastructure. SBC also likely has its eye on the hundreds of thousands of Myanmar migrant workers in Thailand who travel between and conduct their personal finances in both countries.

The launch of SCB Myanmar is also a product of reforms in the banking sector, particularly new rules allowing foreign banks to operate in Myanmar and foreign investors to buy shares of Myanmar banks. Thailand’s KBank became an early foreign banking prospector when it submitted an application to buy 35% of Myanmar’s Ayeyarwaddy Farmers Development Bank in 2019.