NBC urges customers and retailers to use ‘bug-free’ online payments

NBC urges customers and retailers to use ‘bug-free’ online payments

The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) has urged customers and retailers to make use of e-wallets and payment apps such as Bakong to help prevent the spread of Covid-19. In a statement released yesterday, the NBC stressed that using digital banking could help in the fight against the pandemic by lessening the need for cash payments made person-to-person.

The NBC is also encouraging the country’s major banking institutions to provide incentives to both customers and businesses switching to cashless transactions.

“As the regulator of the banking sector of Cambodia, it is vital that we work with the industry as part of our concerted national effort to battle the Covid-19 pandemic. This is why we are encouraging all Cambodians to use e-wallets and payment platforms such as Bakong because they minimise contact and risk,” said Chea Serey, the assistant governor and director general of the NBC.

She added, “While we realise that many Cambodians prefer to conduct their transactions in person and often in cash, we would like retailers and customers to become more used to a cashless life and for the payment platforms to do their best to educate and attract people to their apps.

“Digital payment platforms are one of the country’s most effective tools for ensuring that all segments of society have access to banks and banking,” Chea Serey stressed. “Now, the safety of our population in the face of Covid-19 gives the NBC and other financial institutions another incentive to promote a cashless society.”

The World Health Organization has urged caution when handling banknotes globally and advises people to wash their hands thoroughly after handling money – particularly when eating food afterwards.

In 2020 the NBC launched Cambodia’s first integrated payment system that allows customers to perform a number of functions, such as an e-wallet, mobile payments, online transactions and financial applications – all from the same place.

According to the NBC, more than 59 percent of Cambodians currently conduct their payment transactions online. Khmer Times