Wut Thanittiraporn, President and Chief Executive Officer of CIMB Thai Bank, or CIMBT shares, that the bank’s Assets Under Management (AUM) have grown much faster than initially targeted. Since announcing its Niche Bank strategy focused on Wealth and ASEAN expertise, the bank aimed to double its AUM from 250 billion baht to 500 billion baht within five years. However, clear positive signals since the start of the year have accelerated AUM growth, which is now close to 300 billion baht.
Given this strong trend, the bank has revised its target to triple AUM within five years (2026–2030), reaching about 750 billion baht. Simultaneously, non-interest income has increased by 40% compared to the same period last year.
Two key supporting factors are identified:
Firstly: Existing customers who continue to trust the bank and increase their investments.
Secondly: New customers referred by existing clients, inviting friends and acquaintances to use the services.
The Wealth Your World strategy is driven by three core principles:
“Modern wealth clients do not only seek the highest returns but desire financial outcomes that best align with their life goals. Each client has a unique ‘world’ and financial objectives,” Wut explained.
The core of CIMB Thai’s strategy is transforming its business model from selling products based on executive directives to increasing product sales, to genuinely portfolio management that meets each client’s specific goals under the Customer Centricity concept.
A key tool introduced is the "CIMB Donut," an investment portfolio structure model designed for simplicity, based on three main principles:
Currently, the Balanced portfolio yields average returns of 6–7% per year.
CIMB Thai develops its Wealth Ecosystem to cover all dimensions of wealth management through three main pillars.
1. CIMB Safer Pocket — Wealth with safety.
Designed for funds that need to 'survive, sustain, and grow' in any market condition, using the CIMB Donut. It selects bonds, mutual funds, and insurance products combined into one portfolio, created by the Wealth Research & Advisory team who regularly monitor, review, and rebalance to preserve wealth for heirs.
2. CIMB Preferred — Exclusive privileges, ASEAN-level opportunities.
Clients with investments of 3 million baht or more with CIMB Thai gain immediate CIMB Preferred status across all CIMB Group countries (Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia) without separate application. Benefits include access to regional offshore investment opportunities and special foreign exchange rates, a personal Wealth Relationship Manager, Wealth Research & Advisory services, global airport lounge access, and lifestyle privileges.
3. CIMBweBOND Club — Bond investors’ club.
CIMB Thai currently serves hundreds of thousands of bond investors and aims to expand its membership to one million. The official launch took place at the CIMBweBOND Concert on 9 May 2026 at One Bangkok Forum, featuring over 20 legendary and Gen Z artists with special guests Kong Saharat, Pop Pongkool, Nopporn Chamni, among others.
Additionally, the CIMB My Bond feature on the app offers real-time portfolio overviews and home delivery of bond certificates, moving towards a “paperless bond” era with easy, liquid trading all in one app, 24 hours a day.
Phudinun Setthanun, Head of Affluent & Wealth Management at CIMB Thai, stated that CIMB Thai is a pioneer in developing Thailand’s bond market by establishing a Secondary Market where bonds can be traded in cash at any time. The bank also acts as a Market Maker, repurchasing bonds when clients need liquidity.
Last year, the bank’s secondary bond trading volume surpassed 3 trillion baht. Recommended bonds are all Investment Grade with strict risk management systems and transparent customer information from the outset.
Current Wealth client segments are divided into three tiers:
The bank observes many clients start in the Preferred group but, after receiving good care and building trust, tend to increase investments and eventually move up to Private Wealth. This confirms the effectiveness of the customer-centric strategy in practice.
CIMB Thai continues its Financial Literacy mission with Dr. Wit Sitthivekin for the third consecutive year. This year focuses on the Bond Literacy Mission to enhance Thai understanding of bond investments through the special content series "Unleash Your Wealth: Bond Series," distributed via CIMB Thai's Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok throughout 2026.
Singer Kong Saharat, a CIMB Thai client for several years, now serves as the main bond investment ambassador for the third year, joining the Bond Literacy Mission to raise awareness and spark interest in bond investments among the Thai public.
CIMB Thai’s Wealth business expansion reflects multiple benefits for Thai investors, notably:
“CIMB Thai aims to be the bank that understands its clients best, because true wealth creation is not measured by the number of financial products but by the ability to help clients grow wealth, achieve stability, confidence, and move closer to their most important goals,” Wut said.
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