Superbank, backed by KakaoBank, officially launches in Indonesia

KakaoBank CEO Yun Ho-young, right, poses with Superbank President Director Tigor M. Siahaan, center, and other participants at the launching ceremony of Superbank in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday. Courtesy of KakaoBank

Superbank, an Indonesian digital bank that KakaoBank invested in, has been officially launched, according to the Korean internet-only bank, Wednesday.

Last September, KakaoBank acquired a 10 percent stake in Superbank as part of a partnership with Grab, Southeast Asia's biggest mobility application. Grab is one of Superbank's major shareholders, along with Singapore Telecommunications and Southeast Asia's media giant EMTEK. It marked KakaoBank's first overseas investment.

Supported by industry leaders in the fields of technology, media and finance, such as Grab, EMTEK, Singtel and KakaoBank, Superbank has been continuing to integrate cutting-edge technology and expertise in financial services into its products and offerings.

KakaoBank offered advice on the user interface and user experience of Superbank's mobile banking service for its successful launch, including ideas for Celengan, the bank's automatic saving service.

Superbank enhanced the convenience and accessibility of Grab users. They can directly open Superbank accounts via the Grab app and also link the account to pay for diverse services such as GrabFood and GrabBike.

KakaoBank plans to enhance its understanding of the Southeast Asian market and strengthen its global capacity by joining the product and service development of Superbank.

"Based on our mobile financial technology and strategic partnership, we will contribute to the development of the sector in Indonesia as well as expanding the basis for our business, including establishing a global digital bank network," a KakaoBank spokesperson said.