Line Taiwan Ltd (台灣連線) would go to any length to obtain a Web-only banking license, Line general manager Roger Chen (陳立人) said yesterday, adding that its massive user base would be of great advantage to the development of inclusive finance, which the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) promotes.
The messaging app, launched in June 2011, had 21 million users in Taiwan as of last month, who sent 920 million messages and made more than 30 million calls through the app each day, Chen told a news conference in Taipei.
Line supports the commission’s goal of promoting inclusive financing in Taiwan through digital banking, which gives clients access to useful and affordable financial products and services, Chen said, adding that the large number of Line users means the company could reach more people.
Asked about financial regulations that would bar Line from directly transferring users to a possible digital bank, Chen said that it would “find a way to effectively use the user data,” but would not transfer users’ personal information to a new inclusive financing operation.
Chen has been acting as both chairman and general manager of the firm since former regional chief Liu I-cheng (劉奕成), who headed the preparation office for Line Financial Taiwan Corp (台灣連線金融科技), resigned on Thursday last week.
The commission earlier this year announced that it would issue two Web-only banking licenses. Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信) and Japan-based Rakuten Inc have announced that they would bid for the licenses in cooperation with partners.
“Every player has their strong points. Rakuten has run virtual banks in Japan, but not in Taiwan, while the telecom also has its unique skills,” Chen said, reiterating that obtaining a license is a top priority for Line.
Line has finalized the stakeholders of its proposed digital bank and expects to submit its application to the commission by February next year, he said.
Union Bank of Taiwan (聯邦銀行) on Wednesday announced that it would take a 5 percent stake in Line’s digital bank for NT$500 million (US$16.29 million).
The Chinese-language Apple Daily yesterday reported that other major shareholders include Taipei Fubon Commercial Bank (台北富邦銀行) with a 25 percent stake, as well as Standard Chartered Bank (渣打銀行), CTBC Bank (中信銀行) and Taiwan Mobile Co (台灣大哥大), Far EasTone Telecommunications Co (遠傳電信) with a 5 percent stake each.
However, Line said it could not confirm the list and would let major shareholders make formal announcement themselves, as all of them are listed companies.
Taiwan Transport and Storage Corp (TTS, 台灣通運倉儲) yesterday unveiled its first electric tractor unit — manufactured by Volvo Trucks — in a ceremony in Taipei, and said the unit would soon be used to transport cement produced by Taiwan Cement Corp (TCC, 台灣水泥). Both TTS and TCC belong to TCC International Holdings Ltd (台泥國際集團). With the electric tractor unit, the Taipei-based cement firm would become the first in Taiwan to use electric vehicles to transport construction materials. TTS chairman Koo Kung-yi (辜公怡), Volvo Trucks vice president of sales and marketing Johan Selven, TCC president Roman Cheng (程耀輝) and Taikoo Motors Group
Among the rows of vibrators, rubber torsos and leather harnesses at a Chinese sex toys exhibition in Shanghai this weekend, the beginnings of an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven shift in the industry quietly pulsed. China manufactures about 70 percent of the world’s sex toys, most of it the “hardware” on display at the fair — whether that be technicolor tentacled dildos or hyper-realistic personalized silicone dolls. Yet smart toys have been rising in popularity for some time. Many major European and US brands already offer tech-enhanced products that can enable long-distance love, monitor well-being and even bring people one step closer to
RECORD-BREAKING: TSMC’s net profit last quarter beat market expectations by expanding 8.9% and it was the best first-quarter profit in the chipmaker’s history Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), which counts Nvidia Corp as a key customer, yesterday said that artificial intelligence (AI) server chip revenue is set to more than double this year from last year amid rising demand. The chipmaker expects the growth momentum to continue in the next five years with an annual compound growth rate of 50 percent, TSMC chief executive officer C.C. Wei (魏哲家) told investors yesterday. By 2028, AI chips’ contribution to revenue would climb to about 20 percent from a percentage in the low teens, Wei said. “Almost all the AI innovators are working with TSMC to address the
FUTURE PLANS: Although the electric vehicle market is getting more competitive, Hon Hai would stick to its goal of seizing a 5 percent share globally, Young Liu said Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密), a major iPhone assembler and supplier of artificial intelligence (AI) servers powered by Nvidia Corp’s chips, yesterday said it has introduced a rotating chief executive structure as part of the company’s efforts to cultivate future leaders and to enhance corporate governance. The 50-year-old contract electronics maker reported sizable revenue of NT$6.16 trillion (US$189.67 billion) last year. Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn Technology Group (富士康科技集團), has been under the control of one man almost since its inception. A rotating CEO system is a rarity among Taiwanese businesses. Hon Hai has given leaders of the company’s six