Krom Digital Bank Officially Launches, Targeting Young Customers to Save

PT Krom Bank Indonesia Tbk (Krom) officially launched the application today, Tuesday (27/2). The company targets the younger generation as target users who want to achieve financial independence by growing their money through banking products that have high investment value and are safe.

President Director of Krom Bank Anton Hermawan said that Krom was designed with superior banking services that enable the younger generation to manage and grow their money. The aim is for them to be more proactive in saving and building short and long term financial independence.

“Based on trends and demographics, today's young people are more technology savvy. 30 years into my banking career, the transformation has been extraordinary. "If banks don't join in [digital transformation], they will be left behind," he said at a press conference.

To adapt to this vision, Krom differentiates itself with a number of advantages. First, rates attractive in the form of a savings interest rate of 6% pa and a deposit interest rate of up to 8,75% pa. This figure is claimed to be much higher than the banking market. Krom also eliminates traditional costs, such as credit admin fees and insurance and credit card bill payment admin fees.

Second, be flexible. Krom gives customers the freedom to manage their finances according to their needs by making an allocation of 20 savings and 20 deposits. Then, choose your own account number, place deposits starting from IDR 100 thousand with a daily tenor of 14-180 days and progressive interest. Lastly, it is flexible to withdraw deposits before maturity without incurring penalties and still earns interest of 6% pa

“There is no option for this daily tenor at other banks. We made this because young people usually have very dynamic needs. "So they can still save according to the desired tenor and still get higher interest," added Krom Bank Marketing Head Felicia Thenardy.

Meanwhile, in terms of security, all customer personal data is encrypted with the highest and most comprehensive security standards. Each transaction is equipped with a PIN, password, etc one-time-password (OTP) for an additional layer of security.

Next development

Felicia said that the deposit interest rates offered by Krom to customers are not guaranteed by the LPS (Deposit Insurance Agency). Please note, LPS has set the rupiah guarantee interest rate in commercial banks at 4,25% which is valid from 1 February 2024 to 31 May 2024.

Nevertheless, his party will remain transparent with customers and provide information about whether deposit interest is not guaranteed through various digital channels, including websites and social media.

"If there are questions, we will answer them transparently, we will continue to educate what the risk profile is so that customers understand when investing or saving in Krom," he said.

Anton added, even though it applies high deposit interest rates, Krom remains committed to maintaining its profitability. In offering interest rates, the company is always developing the business and looking for the right business model.

"Indications are that from the health of bank profits, we can keep it positive. The large amount of costs from the bank [is not appropriate] if it is not balanced with an inappropriate business strategy. "For a high interest rate, we have to find the right business for us," he said.

It is certain that in the future Krom will develop more competitive financial products. Not only utilizing the ecosystem of Kredivo GROUP for loan products, such as channeling and joint financing, Krom will collaborate with other partners.

Anton also confirmed that Krom will work on loan products for the MSME segment. It is considered that this segment has not been worked on by Kredivo and KrediFazz, so it doesn't compete directly. “From a product and business perspective, everything will have its time. "We want to run as quickly as possible because the business and IT preparations are complete," he concluded.

It was not stated what specific customer targets Krom would target. It is only stated that it will serve millions of customers in the next few years. Claimed Kredivo as a pioneer paylater in Indonesia now has almost 10 million users since it first operated in 2016.