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发表于 26-11-2007 09:39 AM
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新闻。
Monday November 26, 2007
AEON Credit goes for value
By YEOW POOI LING
AEON Credit Service (M) Bhd, which will make its listing debut on Dec 12, expects future growth to be buoyed by new product offerings and network expansion.
In a recent interview with StarBiz, managing director Naruhito Kuroda said AEON Credit's niche was based on the credit value offered.
“We specialise in small value financing; hence we do not compete directly with banks,” he said.
For example, product financing for consumers ranges from RM1,000 to RM5,000 and for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), less than RM50,000.
This value segment was not popular in the market, as most leasing companies and banks offered financing of more than RM50,000, Kuroda said.
AEON Credit's product financing covers electrical items, office equipment as well as gold and jewellery. “It is more difficult for banks to tap into this segment,” he said.
Besides credit card facility, it also offers personal financing and easy payment scheme. It has over 85,000 credit card customers and the number is likely to increase 30% by the end of this financial year ending Feb 28, 2008 (FY08) and by 50% in FY09.
“Our base is small so it is not that difficult to achieve,” Kuroda said, adding that credit cards contributed about 25% of its revenue in the current fiscal year.
Transactions by credit card were mainly for retail purchases while cash advancement (cash withdrawn from automated teller machines) made up only 5% to 6% of transactions, he said, noting that 30% of its customers spent at Jusco outlets.
AEON Credit's competitive advantage in this segment is its bigger credit limit and low monthly repayment over a longer period.
It also wants credit card members to apply for the easy payment scheme as only 40% of the customers use the plan.
“We want to capture more credit cardholders as our easy payment customers to maximise sales. This will also bring additional sales to us,” he said.
“For those who do not own a credit card, we're planning to issue a pre-paid card next year,” Kuroda added.
In terms of services, AEON Credit offers quick approvals for easy payment applications. The waiting period, previously four days, has been reduced to one day.
For express card members who were seen as good repayment masters, approvals were given within 15 minutes, Kuroda said.
Next year, it also intends to introduce financing of up to RM50,000 for second-hand cars. It started financing motorcycles in 2002, and ventured into second-hand motorcycles segment in 2005.
“We're still studying the interest rate structure to offer a competitive rate, as well as to provide fast approval process. Our sister companies in Hong Kong and Thailand have experience in this segment,” he said.
Additionally, AEON Credit plans to extend product financing to SMEs next year.
“This year, we've been testing the market by offering financing for products like printers, computers and office furniture,” Kuroda said.
Consumer spending in Malaysia is anticipated to remain buoyant. “The economy will be strong, fuelled by the Visit Malaysia campaign, Mega Sales, and festive season celebrations such as the New Year and the Chinese New Year,” he said.
Furthermore, government servants were given a pay rise this year, he noted, adding that Malaysia also had a large percentage of young people who would eventually join the workforce.
Kuroda noted that AEON Credit had a strong network within major cities but had weak presence in suburbs and rural areas, which offered much potential for the easy payment programme.
“Next year, we plan to expand the network to second-tier towns and subsequently to rural areas. We're currently testing the market in Johor, Pahang and Negri Sembilan,” he said.
As for non-performing loans (NPLs), he said the rate over the past few years had been stable, with the NPL ratio for credit cards at 3.2% while for easy payment and personal financing at about 2%.
Kuroda said the company made full provisions for outstanding loans of more than three months and 20% for those with two months outstanding.
In the listing exercise, AEON Credit expects to raise RM55mil, of which RM41mil will be used for loans repayment, RM8mil for working capital, RM3mil for information technology investment and the balance RM3mil for listing expenses.
The initial public offering involves sale of 20 million shares by AEON Credit Japan, the holding company of AEON Credit, and an issue of 22 million new shares in AEON Credit, both at RM2.50 each.
http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/s ... 557722&sec=business |
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