｜Introduction

In this edition of Speeda’s User Voice, we invited Mr. Thanapol Srithanpong, Ph.D., Senior Vice President of Business Research, Corporate Strategy and Innovation at Land and Houses Bank (LH Bank), a leading commercial bank in Thailand.

LH Bank has established itself as a key player in Thailand’s financial sector, consistently delivering innovative solutions. They position themselves as a trusted advisor by ensuring that their services are consistently aligned with the evolving needs of their customers. Committed to sustainable development, the bank has adopted a framework to reduce its environmental impact. By providing loans to support green business initiatives for companies committed to sustainable practices, the company aims to achieve a 25% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2023.

The Knowledge Team that Guides Internal Effective Decision Making and Solves External Research Problems

Business Research under Corporate Strategy and Innovation supports both internal and client-focused initiatives. The team of eight analysts specialises in comprehensive research activities, with those focusing on industry insights serving as primary users of Speeda.

As an internal research and innovation unit, we enable effective decision-making for both internal and external audiences. The external audience includes clients and related stakeholders such as LH Group, and other corporates.

For the internal audience, our team works for other business units, the Executive Board, high-level committees, and senior executives who request analysis of economic and industry dynamics that may impact the bank. For example, executives ask the team to assess the impact of global events, such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict, on the economy and specific industries. By examining the ripple effects of these developments on customers and the economy, we provide insights that are critical to strategy and planning, supporting the organization’s decision-making and strategic capabilities.

Our work extends beyond traditional industries into emerging areas such as artificial intelligence. A key focus of our research is a concentrated effort on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives, particularly the “environment” component.

This focus includes insights on transition credits that enable companies to pursue greener operations, such as reducing emissions from manufacturing processes. By providing concise, actionable guidance, we help clients make strategic decisions that align with sustainability goals.

Integration of Diverse Data Platforms to Accelerate Research and Analysis

To maintain high standards of analysis, the team leverages a mix of primary and secondary data sources to assess “Economic Conditions”, “Industry Trends”, and “Thematic Insights” – the three core focus areas for a commercial bank’s strategic framework.

Primary sources, such as data from public bodies and key sectors, serve as foundational inputs but are often insufficient on their own. Secondary sources, including global data providers and local subscriptions, add further depth, enriching analyses and addressing specific needs.

The team leverages multiple platforms, including Bloomberg and CEIC, to gather comprehensive data. For instance, in ESG-related research, Bloomberg can be useful for collecting emission data for publicly listed companies, while other platforms provide detailed insights into company-level emissions and emerging regulatory changes.

The collected data is then extracted and synthesised into an internal database, which serves as a crucial resource for the team’s daily and weekly research activities, ensuring accuracy and efficiency in delivering actionable insights.

How Speeda Enhances LH Bank’s Research Capabilities

Among these resources, Speeda integrates seamlessly into the process, serving as a data provider that offers real-time industry trends and comprehensive coverage of emerging and established industries—locally and globally. We need secondary information to get a clear view of the market.

Speeda’s reports provide detailed insights into industry issues, illustrating the value chain and trends with reliable data. They also include supply chain information, providing an additional perspective that enriches the analysis. This comprehensive coverage enables the team to understand the big picture of the industry in specific regions.

Speeda’s industry reports are organised by both industry and country, making it easy to quickly identify relevant information. For example, if we need information about the automotive industry in a specific region such as Thailand, Vietnam or China, team members can access industry-specific reports on Speeda with just a few clicks.

The well-structured insight reports are almost ready to use, which improves the team’s efficiency in supporting regular reporting tasks. This not only helps the team work faster, but also improves the quality of the output. In fact, some of Speeda’s insights have even enriched key aspects of the team’s analysis.

In addition to reports on established industries, Speeda provides insight into emerging technologies and new industries through trend reports. These updates can help the team stay ahead of developments in high-growth sectors.

“When it comes to industry analysis at the regional level, Speeda will be one of the data solutions I choose.”

Local data providers can complement Speeda’s resources for local company data. This combination of tools ensures the team maintains a balanced, comprehensive perspective, integrating both international and local insights into their research.

Speeda’s CRS Assists LH Bank in Heavy Research Work

In addition to the data platform, the research team has utilised Speeda’s Customised Research Services (CRS) for specific, in-depth research needs. CRS is an on-demand desk-based research service that enables clients to submit tailored research requests directly to Speeda’s analyst team through the platform. This service delivers customised reports to clients with insights tailored to their strategic needs so they can save time on niche research topics.

In the recent case, we requested information on a significant megatrend driven partly by the ongoing US-China trade conflict, the relocation of production bases and the expansion of advanced technology sectors. This shift, including the migration of semiconductor manufacturing and data centres across new regions, has important implications for Thai industries and the bank’s strategic positioning.

Our team needed to understand the key drivers of this trend and its potential impact on regional markets in order to provide clear guidance to our staff and senior management. While we have the ability to conduct such research, limited manpower makes it challenging to efficiently complete extensive tasks. To save time and optimize our resources, we turned to Speeda.

It is not the best use of our analysts’ resources to collect and analyse 10-20 pages of information. Instead, we prefer to use their expertise for tasks such as analysing raw data or generating insights that complement Speeda’s output. CRS exceeded our expectations, delivering a comprehensive output that provided a clear understanding of the situation and the necessary actions to take.

The report featured in-depth analysis, exploring foreign direct investment (FDI) flows, regional industry impacts, and potential risks and opportunities for the stakeholders. With this information, we were able to gather insights, key opportunities, and risks and provide directions for both senior leadership and the operation team.

The success of the project highlighted Speeda’s strengths: A robust database and the ability to efficiently manage complex, macro-level research requests. Speeda’s ability to manage the “sprint” of collecting and analysing rich data to deliver actionable insights made it the clear choice for this project, freeing up internal analysts to focus on other strategic priorities. Speeda’s customized research service accelerates analytical workflows and optimizes manpower, allowing us to focus on our core business while improving the overall quality of our output.

Next goal:  The Leading Think Tank Driving Great Decisions

We want to broaden our scope to become an effective think tank for both our leaders and our clients. By becoming a key knowledge hub, we aim to strengthen our advisory role, providing forward-looking insights and guidance to help companies navigate evolving industry trends.

Emerging trends, such as ESG, require both corporate and SME clients to align with global standards, including the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. For companies exporting to regions with strict environmental regulations, such as the European Union, understanding carbon accounting standards and adapting to evolving emissions reduction practices is critical.

We aim to position ourselves as a leader in providing comprehensive knowledge, clear concepts and actionable insights that enable companies to meet these challenges and thrive in a dynamic landscape.

｜Let Speeda Accelerate Your Research Needs

Experience the power of efficient research with Speeda – your go-to platform for comprehensive industry insights and strategic decision-making.

Schedule a free demonstration call with our team  and see how our data solutions can elevate your business intelligence capabilities.