PHNOM PENH: The FinTech industry has been given the opportunity to play a significant role in promoting financial inclusion in Cambodia, said H.E. Mrs. Chea Serey, Governor of the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC).

She made the remarks at CamTech Summit 2023 held at the Centre for Banking Studies, Phnom Penh on Nov. 30.

The summit was organized by NBC in collaboration with the Cambodia Association of Finance and Technology around the theme: “Forging Partnerships: Fostering Collaboration and Innovation for Digital Financial Services in Mekong and Beyond.”

The CamTech Summit is a unique opportunity to provide an integrated platform for policymakers, regulators, businesses, and Tech players from various sectors to discuss the recent advancement of technologies both in Cambodia and globally, the opportunities and challenges they provide, and their growing importance in shaping the Cambodian economy in the digital era, especially in the context of recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

“This platform will promote awareness, coordination, exchanging of views, knowledge, and experience among all stakeholders and enable policymakers and regulators to gather input for better design of appropriate policies and regulations to cope with fast-evolving technology, and especially prepare Cambodia for the transition towards a digital economy and moving from a middle income to an upper middle-income country,” she said.

In partnership with and in support of the private sector, the NBC has been at the forefront of this trend, leveraging new technologies to modernize payment systems by introducing a range of innovative solutions – the most prominent being our Bakong backbone for payment systems to enhance interoperability, promote financial inclusion, and facilitate the ease of using the Cambodian Riel, she said.

While the offer of digital financial services has kept growing over the years, especially since it enabled the financial sector to demonstrate its resilience throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, the FinTech industry has been given the opportunity to play a significant role in promoting financial inclusion, provided a number of challenges are addressed, NBC Governor said, adding that such challenges include digital literacy especially in the rural areas; cybersecurity risks; data privacy and data protection.

The NBC is committed to further supporting FinTech adoption, innovation, and fair and transparent competition as reflected in its FinTech Development Roadmap (FDR) 2020-2025 in alignment with the objectives of the Financial Sector Development Strategy (FSDS) 2016-2025, the National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS) 2019-2025 and Digital Economy and Society Framework by the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC). AKP