ACLEDA Bank has posted healthy first-quarter figures for its operations in Laos, a bank representative said Tuesday, with the Cambodian-owned bank recording large increases in both deposits and loans, defying the financial crisis.

  Now there are a lot of Laotians taking out loans from ACLEDA Bank.

Yin Virak, ACLEDA vice president and head of the bank's International Department, said the bank's loans had more than doubled from US$1.2 million to $3.32 million in Laos, while deposits were up 83 percent, rising from $1.5 million to $2.7 million in the last quarter. He added that the bank now had 2,034 depositors and 699 borrowers, which rose from 1,234 depositors and 253 borrowers at the end of last year.

"We have been successful due to our experience in Cambodia," he said Tuesday. "The success has ... relied on the support of the Laotian government, which has urged people to borrow money," he said.

Kengchai Sixannon, first secretary of the Laotian Embassy in Phnom Penh, said Tuesday that the presence of ACLEDA Bank was a clear sign of growth in the Laotian banking sector.

"Now there are a lot of Laotians taking out loans from ACLEDA Bank to enlarge their businesses, and it has also created more jobs for local people," he said.

Acleda launched its Laos operations in July 2008 with the establishment of a head office in Vientiane, followed by additional branches in Champassak and Savannakhet provinces.