Challenge 4 – Laying the foundation for platform banking in the Pacific (KINA Bank)

Partner: Kina Bank

Country: Papua New Guinea

Website: www.kina.com.pg

 

 

 

Kina Bank was established in Papua New Guinea in 1985 as a diversified financial services company. KINA is listed on both the Australian and Port Moresby Stock Exchanges and offers a wide range of banking services for retail, commercial and SME customers across the country, from savings accounts to small business loans, investments to mortgages, financial advice and investment management.

Recently it acquired the retail, commercial and SME businesses from ANZ PNG, which includes all retail branches, ATMs and EFTPOS terminals. This acquisition has made Kina Bank the second largest bank in PNG. KINA’s aspiration is to be PNG’s leading digital bank and to be at the forefront of new technologies.

 

Challenge

Up until now, there have been very few avenues open to developers, FinTech start-ups and e-commerce players to leverage existing banking, payments or Mobile Money platforms in the Pacific. This has resulted in the availability of only relatively basic products, stop-gap solutions and clunky user interfaces, resulting in less than optimal customer experience and low uptake of digital banking solutions.

More than ever before Fintechs are setting the level of expectations that customers have for banks around the globe, and these expectations are rapidly trickling through in Pacific markets. With the emergence and the growing importance of open banking models, banks are trying to evolve, but many of them are weighed down by legacy IT systems. This is especially true for most banks operating in Papua New Guinea.

With a limited legacy IT infrastructure, KINA is ideally placed to differentiate itself from its main competitors and can transform itself from a relatively small Papua New Guinean challenger bank to become a leader in digital financial services in a rapidly developing Pacific market, wherein e-commerce and associated financial services will play an ever-growing role. This implies that within the digital banking ecosystem, a proficiency for establishing partnerships as well as a willingness to create win-win, symbiotic relationships will become a critical core competency.

With this background in mind, KINA bank is keen to partner with a Fintech that can provide a digital solution to lay the foundation for a digital strategy based on an open banking model.

The value proposition for the Fintech

  • Opportunity to work with a vibrant challenger bank with big ambitions to disrupt the market in PNG with cutting edge digital financial services.
  • More than 2/3rd of the population is yet to access digital banking services.
  • Opportunity to leverage the recent shift in organisational culture fostering digital innovation right from board level down to its branches.

 

Other Relevant Information

  1. PNG National Financial Inclusion Strategic Plan (click here)
  2. Study on the financial competencies of low-income households in PNG (click here)
  3. Read about the Payment System Infrastructure in PNG (click here)
  4. Doing business and economy profile of PNG 2019 (click here)