Indonesia's Bank Mandiri to fortify Hong Kong unit

Encouraged by the huge remittances in its Hong Kong branch, Bank Mandiri is aiming to strengthen its business in the said country.

Bank Mandiri's Hong Kong branch booked US$2 billion in remittance volume as of July, an increase of 155 percent compared to the same period last year. The branch recorded more than 20,000 remittance transactions in the period, most of which were submitted by Indonesian workers in Hong Kong.

“We will develop our systems and improve the quality of service in our office [in Hong Kong] to book higher growth for this year, as well as in the coming years,” said Bank Mandiri director of risk management, Sentot A. Sentausa.

Out of all the remittances sent to Indonesia from Hong Kong, East Java and Central Java were the top destinations, accounting for 52 percent and 38 percent, respectively, with the remainder distributed to other provinces in Indonesia.

In the first half of this year, the bank's Hong Kong branch enjoyed 170 percent of credit growth, with its

non-performing loans (NPL) standing at zero percent.

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