Thailand: NSF recruits Grab riders and targets more members
- Charles Chau
The National Savings Fund (NSF) has partnered Grab, the ride-hailing, food delivery and payments company, to meet the retirement needs of about 100,000 Grab riders, said Bangkok Post.
The NSF has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to convert Grab riders to NSF members, said NSF secretary-general Jaruluck Ruengsuwan. In this partnership, Grab will collect savings from its riders and direct the funds to NSF, she said.
The number of registered Grab riders is 300,000, but active riders make up only 100,000 and the majority of riders are informal workers, said Kengkran Louvirojanakul, head of public affairs at Grab.
The NSF’s total savings stands at 8 billion baht (USD$260 million), which is derived from accumulated savings by members and government contributions. By law, NSF members must contribute a minimum of 50 baht (USD$1.63) per month to the fund, with the maximum amount capped at 13,200 baht (USD$430).
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The NSF will be wooing other private organisations which operate ride-hailing and goods delivery services, said Jaruluck.
The NSF is a voluntary savings scheme and has around 200,000 branches nationwide, including Village Funds, branches located at Big C Supercenter and others in district offices.
It targets a 10-year return of at least 3% for long-term investment to provide members with sustainable pensions, and currently holds investments totaling 8 billion baht.
