Economy and commerce

Even though Cambodia’s insurance industry is still young compared to neighboring countries such as Thailand and Vietnam, there is potential for its growth with the development of human resources in the sector. ...

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. ...

The Ministry of Interior and the Securities and Exchange Commission of Cambodia (SECC) issued a joint release yesterday announcing that investigations of Empire Big Capital Ltd (EBC) and related firms AIF and ICA showed the companies had engaged in investment fraud.     ...

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. ...

The Thailand government will consider tapping into 50 emerging cities, including those in Cambodia, for investment opportunities based on information provided by Japan External Trade Organization (Jetro), according to the Bangkok Post. ...

A new report by market research firm TNS identifies five triggers that acted together as catalysts for the dramatic changes in consumer behaviour that led to China’s “explosive” e-commerce growth, and suggests other Asian economies could be on the same trajectory. ...

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. ...

Representatives of Cambodia’s tech sector say they are ready to help the country take advantage of global advances in information and communication technology (ICT), after recent reforms to the main body representing the industry. The management of the ICT Federation of Cambodia was overhauled in ...

The Swedish-Thai business community was given a rare opportunity to get a heads up on the investment climate in Cambodia, courtesy of departing Ambassador of Sweden to Cambodia, Ms Anna Maj Hultgård. ...

New trade privileges that allow Cambodian-manufactured travel goods duty-free access to the United States for the first time could see exports of these items increase by over 400 per cent in the coming years, industry experts said yesterday. ...

The controversial Union Law, which was passed and put into force after dozens of debates and protests, is expected to build confidence among garment and textile buyers as well as employers and workers, experts said. Sandra D’Amico, vice president of the Cambodian Federation of Employers ...

The Cambodia-India Joint Committee Meeting on bilateral trade and technology exchange will be held in New Delhi on Friday, the spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told reporters 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. ...

Cambodia is one of the potential choices for a blue chip Thailand-based company’s expansion into the Asean region, according to the Bangkok Post yesterday. ...

The ASEAN-Korea Centre has hosted a seminar to promote investment in Cambodia’s agricultural industry. Co-organized with the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC), the “Investment and Business Environment Seminar on Cambodia” was held at Hotel Shilla in Seoul on June 29. About 70 Koreans attended. ...