Banking and financial services

The government yesterday named three bogus companies that have taken deposits from ordinary Cambodians and later absconded, after promising them monthly returns in the form of high interest rate payments. ...

The Tourism Ministry has started urging businesses and tour operators to accept Chinese yuan notes as part of a drive to attract tourists from China, sparking concern among some business owners who fear losses and fake currency. ...

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Cambodia could start raising capital from the public, through the stock exchange, if government efforts to amend financial regulations to allow SMEs to be publicly listed get off the ground. ...

Cambodia’s economy continues to perform strongly, but rapid credit growth must be contained to reduce the risk of economic and financial instability, and to ensure a “soft landing” of the credit cycle, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said in a statement issued yesterday at the ...

More Cambodians than ever are turning to microfinance for money to cover their small business endeavours or pay expenses, and, increasingly, they are looking to protect their families from the burden of these debts in the event of death or disability. ...

Three months since the central bank soft-launched its FAST payment system it is taking the system public, making electronic riel-denominated transfers available to the customers of more than a dozen financial institutions. ...

Financial markets in Cambodia have to serve more people, especially the poor, with more products at a lower cost and the key challenge lies in creating a broader interconnected financial ecosystem that reaches populations that cannot access banks, said industry experts. ...

The rapid growth in the number of Cambodians using mobile money services to transfer remittances is a positive step towards greater financial inclusion, and is serving as a gateway to financial services for the largely unbanked rural population, experts said yesterday. ...

Clients of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in the Kingdom can now expect some form of protection from over-indebtedness that arises from their inability to meet their financial obligations on time as agreed in a credit agreement. ...

Branchless banking, including mobile banking, is one of the hottest trends in Cambodia’s microfinance industry, helping financial institutions deliver their products conveniently and affordably to people living in rural areas, industry insiders said yesterday.   ...

The first comprehensive survey of the accessibility and usage of Cambodian financial services found that only 17 per cent of the Kingdom’s adult population is banked, with poor access to financial services among the key impediments to financial inclusion of those living in rural areas. ...

Revenue collected by the customs and excise department jumped nearly 20 per cent during the first six months of the year, compared with the same period a year earlier, figures released yesterday show. ...

Banking industry insiders expressed concern yesterday over a spike in the amount of delinquent debts reported by microfinance institutions (MFIs) across the Kingdom, which they attributed to farmers struggling to repay their loans after adverse weather conditions affected their crops. ...

A Japanese businessman has acquired a majority stake of microfinance company Farmer Union Development Fund (FUDF) and plans to expand its lending to the real estate sector as well as small- and medium-sized enterprises, he revealed yesterday. ...

MasterCard, the plastic payment-card brand of global financial services firm MasterCard Worldwide, has been present in the Kingdom since 2001, but until recently it was relatively unknown to most Cambodians. However, there are signs its signature debit and credit cards are poised for robust growth ...

Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) has introduced its mobile banking app in Cambodia that integrates augmented reality capabilities and a QR code reader for customers to easily locate the nearest Maybank branch. ...

The Ministry of Commerce has tapped Wing (Cambodia) Ltd Specialised Bank to be the fourth financial institution designated to handle payments for companies incorporated using the ministry’s online registration system. ...

The General Department of Taxation (GDT) signed a memorandum of understanding with the Financial Intelligence Unit of the National Bank of Cambodia (FIUNBC) to exchange information on money laundering and the financing of terrorist activities. ...

E-Money, which operates under Metfone, and Pay&Go SEA (Cambodia), entered into a partnership for money transfers, mobile phone top-ups and the payment of utility bills. ...

While Cambodia’s crowded banking sector has enjoyed strong growth, the majority of consumers surveyed have cited dissatisfaction with banking services as a main impediment for the sector’s confidence and future growth. ...

Cambodia’s leading commercial bank Acleda in partnership with MasterCard Asia and the Pacific, last week launched the Acleda MasterCard electronic plastic card to allow customers to make withdrawals through any ATM as well as make payments around the world where the MasterCard logo is displayed. ...

The Ministry of Economy and Finance in partnership with Cambodian Public Bank Plc. signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) yesterday, establishing the bank as the Ministry’s prime tax collecting institution nationwide. ...

The National Bank of Cambodia responded to rumours yesterday that local banks were no longer accepting US dollar banknotes with minor imperfections, such as small tears, creases or ink stamps, stating that the central bank had not changed its policies. ...

The KB Global Digital Bank is a rechargeable wallet-based mobile banking service which combines both financial services, such as account, wire transfer, overseas remittance and P2P payment, and non-financial services like messaging. ...