Maruhan Japan Bank will be the next to join a growing list of Cambodian banks that provide cross-border remittance in Chinese yuan.

The move by the Japanese-owned bank is part of a greater push to promote trade with China throughout the region, according to a statement from Maruhan.

“This trade agreement will not only contribute to people doing business with China in Cambodia, but also all people in the ASEAN countries due to Maruhan’s expansion to Laos, Myanmar and Singapore,” the bank’s marketing depatment said.

Union Commercial Bank, ANZ Royal Bank and Cambodian Public Bank also planned to offer the services this year, the Post reported.

“We’ve had discussions with banks and we know there are more transactions with Chinese counterparts … Banks might feel the need to offer the service as business increases with China,” National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) spokeswoman and director general Nguon Sokha said.

China invested some US$1.19 billion in Cambodia last year, a 71 per cent increase on the year before, according to government data.

Although the NBC has seen an increase in yuan remittance, transactions in US dollars still dominate the Cambodian banking sector, she said.

No figures for the volume of transactions in yuan were available from the NBC.

Cambodian banks do not need NBC approval to remit Chinese currency, Nguon Sokha said.

The Chinese side, however, regulates tightly the flow of yuan in and out of its borders.

To contact the reporter on this story: Don Weinland at [email protected]