The Ministry of Post and Telecommunications and the Cambodian Association of Finance and Technology (CAFT) have joined hands to increase cooperation on the promotion of digital technology and facilitate more effective communication in the banking and financial sector.
The two organisations signed a memorandum of understanding to this end just days after CAFT launched the latest version of the Banking and Financial Institutions’ Code of Conduct (CoC) on March 4, in collaboration with the Association of Banks in Cambodia (ABC) and the Cambodia Microfinance Association (CMA).
CAFT president Remi Pell said that the role of financial institutions is to stimulate the economy and support small businesses to thrive easily, and that development of technology and innovation in relevant sectors significantly contribute to achieving an inclusive, stable and sustainable digital economy.
He said the MoU signing was a demonstration of efforts by relevant financial institutions to improve, not only to maintain sustainability, but to increase consumer confidence through the introduction of the CoC for the industry.
“There are a number of challenges we face in our industry, not just in the Cambodian context, but globally – cyber fraud and privacy data issues,” Pell said.
Cambodia Microfinance Association (CMA) Communications Department director Kaing Tongngy told The Post that technology has a vital role to play in the banking and financial system, and that its evolution has considerably changed the way services in the field are provided.
He added that digital technology has helped reduce costs, increase the efficiency of services, and expand the scope of the banking and financial sector, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“During the lockdown in 2021 due to the outbreak of Covid-19, the banking and financial sectors were still providing much-needed services to customers, as we mainstreamed our knowledge of the use of digital technology … technology has really facilitated our work a lot,” Tongngy said.
NBC on October 27, 2020 launched an inter-bank mobile payment platform, known as the “Bakong System”, aiming to give a powerful impetus to rural financial sector development and nurture financial inclusivity in the Kingdom.
Bakong enables interoperability between banks and financial institutions that is safe and cost-effective.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) reported in mid-2021 that Cambodian tech and digital businesses achieved $470 million in revenue for 2019.
Broken down by sectors, e-commerce accounted for 27.6 per cent, e-services 7.8 per cent, digital media 10.2 per cent, advertising technology 12.7 per cent, transportation 3.8 per cent and online travel 37.9 per cent.
