Canadia Bank Limited says it will launch Cambodia's first network of automatic teller

machines (ATMs) with access to international financial institutions by late 2004.

This will allow anyone with a card account at a linked overseas bank to withdraw

money.

The plan will at last bring to Cambodia a financial service taken for granted in

developed countries around the world.

At the moment, transferring money through banks or sending money through companies

such as Western Union are the primary ways to receive cash from overseas in Cambodia.

But Canadia Bank's IT manager, Au Siek Kheang, said his company wants to provide

more services to its clients and cater to new businesses entering the country every

year.

"There are a lot of foreigners coming; little by little, they will increase

businesses," he said.

Canadia Bank introduced a domestic ATM network in 1999. The machines, mounted in

the walls of the bank's branch offices, only access bank accounts at Canadia Bank.

The new machines, with the slide of a credit card, will perform all the typical functions

of an ATM such as verifying account balances and withdrawing money from almost anywhere

in the world.

Officials at the Ministry of Commerce said Canadia Bank said they had recognized

a promising business opportunity.

"This is a logical step," said Khek Ravy, secretary of state at the ministry.

"They will make more business this way."

Canadia Bank plans to have ten ATM machines ready for credit card use by next year.

Four will be in bank branches and the rest are intended for commercial centers, hotels,

and the Phnom Penh International Airport. Canadia Bank already offers a MasterCard

credit card and is in the process of making a Visa card which will come out early

in 2004.

The bank claims it has 30,000 clients from China, Taiwan, and Singapore, although

the majority are based in Cambodia. It has about 1,000 debit cardholders in Cambodia

as well.

The ATMs will be made in England, but the software will be purchased from Vietnam.

For now, Vietnam will be the exclusive provider of the ATM system since it has access

to international financial networks.