Early in 2026, it seemed Thailand's economy might recover, but after just a few months, the outlook turned gloomy again. One reason is rising oil prices causing many people to tighten their belts and save more. How this situation impacts Thailand's credit card and personal loan businesses remains to be seen.
Atis Rujirawat, Chief Executive Officer of Krungsri Consumer, said that at the end of 2025, card spending grew strongly and continued into January 2026, until the conflict in the Middle East arose. This caused consumer confidence to decline, making the credit card business face greater challenges this year because no matter how much promotions are offered, people may not change their behavior to spend as before.
Looking more closely at current consumer behavior, a trend of "tightening belts" is emerging, with spending shifting toward better value, such as
- Spending at fine dining restaurants has decreased, while spending at fast food outlets grew by 9%.
- Spending on luxury brand goods has declined, but spending on fast fashion remains steady without decline.
- Spending at large private hospitals has decreased, while spending at government hospitals grew by 7%.
(Data from spending in 2025)
In the first quarter of 2026, it became even clearer that people are focusing on essential spending. This is reflected in March's data, where categories supporting portfolio growth included fuel and supermarkets (for daily necessities). Therefore, the company will focus on promoting spending categories essential to daily life rather than luxury goods.
This adjustment aligns with recent organizational restructuring, including revising card benefits to better meet consumer needs across Firstchoice, T1, and other Krungsri affiliated cards, as well as expanding partnerships with various merchants, such as offering installment plans across multiple categories.
However, Krungsri Consumer continues to emphasize strict risk management. Although non-performing loans are not expected to rise in 2026, the company will monitor developments in the conflict closely. Debt relief measures for customers have continued from last year.
The company's target for 2026 is 420 billion baht in card spending, a 6% increase over the previous year. New loan volume is expected to reach 98 billion baht, growing 4%, with 627,000 new customer accounts, a 9% increase. Total outstanding loans are projected at 147 billion baht, up 3%.
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