As Southeast Asia’s largest economy, with a nominal gross domestic product of $1.05 trillion, Indonesia has 120 commercial banks and a finance and banking sector that has experienced significant growth in recent years.
Historically, challenges to growth in this sector have included lack of bank access among the small- and medium-sized enterprises that comprise a significant portion of Indonesia’s economy, as well as a lack of confidence in the banking system, typically in the more rural areas. Having been founded over six decades ago in 1956, PT Bank Danamon Indonesia Tbk leverages its industry expertise to address these challenges. Owned by MUFG Bank, Japan’s largest bank and among the largest in the world, Danamon is poised to ride Indonesia’s finance and banking growth wave with stability and surety.
“Danamon has 67 years of history; currently, in terms of loan size, we are the seventh-largest in the country. Profit-wise, by operating income, we rank fifth in Indonesia. We also have a big subsidiary, Adira Finance, which supports automobile loans. They are the leading multifinance company in the market, and this is among our strengths,” said Danamon’s President Director Daisuke Ejima.
Ejima likewise noted that MUFG’s acquisition of Danamon — a merger that took place in phases, culminating in 2019 with the Japanese bank acquiring 92.5% ownership — has further enhanced both Danamon’s and Adira Finance’s strengths. “MUFG typically deals with large corporate segments, while Danamon covers the small- and medium-sized enterprise segment, retail and individual customers, and Adira Finance,” he said.
“With the combination of MUFG, we can capture the entire value chain in the automobile industry. That’s one typical example of the strength and coverage that expanded through MUFG’s acquisition of Danamon. We also do what we call ‘business matching’ between Japanese, Thailand and Indonesian companies and individuals. We try to match the information and actually provide the opportunities for both parties to have a business meeting,” Ejima explained.
“Indonesia is very competitive in today’s financial market. Simply providing ordinary financing on the corporate side or on the individual side is insufficient. We need to make connections, whether it’s for credit or for investment purposes. Danamon has the capabilities to provide various financial solutions to cater to the customers’ needs. We also need to have good digital capabilities, aside from conventional banking. We are continually expanding our service coverage to better serve Indonesian society,” he concluded.
