Banking and financial services

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) will provide a $50 million financing package to Amret Co to help the Cambodian microfinance institution increase lending to smaller businesses, particularly those in the agriculture sector and rural areas, it said in a press release. ...

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) will provide a $50 million syndicated loan to Acleda Bank to boost lending to small and medium enterprises, of which at least half will support women-owned enterprises, it said yesterday. ...

Australian banking giant ANZ has come under fire for its response to a scandal over its financing of a sugar plantation previously linked to forced evictions and child labour in Kampong Speu province. ...

Acleda Bank, Cambodia’s largest bank, is morphing its existing training centre into a full-fledged educational institution, after obtaining a licence last month. The new institute will look to provide bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business administration, with majors in finance and banking. The Post’s Sorn ...

Kasikornbank, Thailand’s fourth-largest bank by assets, has received a licence to open its first branch in Cambodia, a bank executive said yesterday. ...

Growth in the country’s expanding microfinance sector slowed slight­ly in the last quarter of 2015, but both loans and deposits finished the year about 45 percent high­er than at the end of 2014, ac­cording to figures from the Cam­bodia Microfinance Association (CMA). ...

Bank of Ayudhya Pcl (Krungsri), Thailand’s fifth largest financial group and a subsidiary of Japan’s leading financial group Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, has acquired a 100-per-cent stake of Hattha Kaksekar Limited (HKL), one of the leading microfinance institutions in Cambodia, for an undisclosed amount. ...

Though it’s extremely early days, experts this week welcomed Cambodia’s membership to the nascent China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), saying it would provide much-needed diversity of funding for the nation’s infrastructure and connectivity needs. ...

France’s BRED Bank, one of the largest lenders in Europe, plans to open its first branch in Cambodia by the end of the year as it expands its network in ASEAN, its CEO said, adding that it aims to assist  small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) ...

The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) is requiring financial institutions to gradually phase in a higher liquidity coverage ratio (LCR) to ensure sustainable growth in the industry and avoid crises.  ...

True Money, a new entrant to Cambodia’s growing mobile money-transfer market, said yesterday it will start operations across the Kingdom from January 1, with the first phase focusing only on local transfers, according to a company official.The money-transfer service, which comes under the Thailand-based Charoen ...

Shinhan Bank announced on Dec. 23 that it has opened a new branch in Steng Min Chey, an emerging developing area in Phnom Penh, in order for Shinhan Khmer Bank, a subsidiary of Shinhan Bank in Cambodia, to accelerate its business in the country. ...

The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC), or Central Bank, has issued ASEAN Commemorative Coins to mark the establishment of the ASEAN Community on December 31, according to its statement on Friday. ...

A day after the US Federal Reserve increased interest rates, which can potentially impact incoming investments and make debt more costly, experts say the Kingdom’s strong underlying growth will help maintain investments flows and leave the country largely unaffected.The Fed’s 25 basis point rate hike ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday called on banks and microfinance institutions (MFIs) to suspend loan repayments by borrowers affected by this year’s drought, or either make the loans interest free or cut the rates. ...

As the global economy faces a challenging growth environment, developed and least developed countries are increasingly competing for export markets to spur growth, with many – like Cambodia – aiming to diversify markets as well as products. Cambodia has relied primarily on exports of ...

Prince Microfinance Plc held its official opening yesterday, becoming the 49th registered microlender to operate in Cambodia’s rapidly expanding microfinance market.Hon Sorachana, CEO of Prince Microfinance Plc, said the new financial institution will focus on providing a range of credit options to Cambodians and foreigners, ...

Sathapana Ltd, the third-largest microfinance institution (MFI) in Cambodia, has submitted a formal application to the central bank to merge with a local Japanese-owned bank and operate the consolidated entity as a commercial bank, a company executive said yesterday. ...

A US government finance institution plans to inject more capital into Cambodia’s businesses, forecasting rapid growth in small business and microfinance institutions around the country. The development finance institution Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) is looking to invest in Cambodia’s small and medium enterprises (SMEs) ...

Rapid credit growth – increasingly financed by bank flows from abroad – poses significant risk to Cambodia’s economy and requires prudential policies to cool lending and reduce exposure, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned in a report released yesterday. It said while Cambodia’s short-term economic ...

The Cambodian hire-purchase subsidiary of Aeon Thana Sinsap (Thailand) or Aeonts has become the first Japanese financial firm to receive a specialised bank licence to do credit-card business in the neighbouring country, according to a statment to the Stock Exchange of Thailand Aeon Microfinance (Cambodia), ...

Japan-based JCB International (JCBI), a global payment brand and a leading credit card issuer and acquirer, has reached an agreement with Cambodia Public (Campu) Bank to expand the reach of its JCB cards in Cambodia. ...

Lending by microfinance institutions (MFIs) rose about 50 percent at an annualized rate during the first nine months of the year, according to the Cambodia Microfinance Association, which said the surge was sparked by economic stability and an increase in demand from clients wanting to ...

Cambodian Public Bank Plc. (Campu Bank), a leading commercial bank in the Kingdom of Cambodia (“Cambodia”), and JCB International Co., Ltd. (JCBI), the international operating subsidiary of JCB Co., Ltd., today announced that Campu Bank has launched JCB merchant acquiring service to accept JCB cards ...