He said the bank's foreign exchange booths at the new international airport had received a warm response from customers. In the month since the airport opened, TMB Bank's foreign exchange turnover, in terms of both volume and income, rose 30 per cent year-on-year.

Revenue from the bank's foreign exchange business contributes as much as 20 per cent to its total non-interest income.

The bank has 18 foreign exchange booths at Suvarnabhumi Airport as well as one fully operating branch. It plans to open two new branches at the Suvarnabhumi office buildings of Thai Airways International and Airports of Thailand next year.

Recently, Prakarn Tawisuwan, TMB Bank's first executive vice president, said the airport branch has not performed well though the exchange booths had proven to be popular.

Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) also operates 18 exchange booths at Suvarnabhumi as well as five micro-branches. 

According to SCB executive vice president Na-Bhengbhasang Krishna-mara, the bank's foreign exchange outlets at the airport generated a significant amount of income in their first month of operations. He said the number of transactions per day at the airport outlets was quite high compared with exchange booths in other areas.

However, he said income from exchange booths does not contribute a major proportion of the bank's total non-interest income.

As the micro-branches have not been performing well, the bank is considering moving them to different locations within the airport. It is also considering opening more currency-exchange booths.

Only SCB and TMB were awarded concessions to open outlets in the passenger terminal at Suvarnabhumi Airport, while other banks have branches in areas outside the terminal such as the airport bus terminal and office buildings of Thai Airways and Airports of Thailand.

Somruedi Banchongduang

The Nation