Cambodia’s largest home-grown commercial bank, Canadia Bank, has announced grand plans to become the country’s biggest financial services provider as it unveils a series of goals.
Chief Executive Officer, Michael Lor, revealed that the Bank has set its sights on branching out into the insurance market, with talks currently underway with a major regional life insurance partner. Canadia Bank leadership is also evaluating the prospect of expanding into neighbouring countries, starting with Laos, Myanmar then China, further strengthening the bank.
This follows on from the recent launch of Cambodia Post Bank, a $38 million joint venture between the Bank, Fullerton Financial Holdings, and the Cambodian Postal Service.
Fullerton shares its years of management experience, knowledge and proven strategies gleaned from its global operations focusing on SME and mass market in other emerging markets, while Canadia Bank brings its local expertise to the business. Cambodia Post Bank currently has eleven branches, five in Phnom Penh, with two new branches slated to open by the end of 2013, and eleven branches scheduled for 2014.
“This combination will bring the group to the next level. In Cambodia, we believe that for a local entity it is important that we differentiate ourselves in the market, and there are not many here that can do that today,” Lor says.
“The vision of the group eventually is that we do not want to just be a local commercial bank. We want to be a regional financial services provider who has interests in a broad segment of financial services.”
In another major move, Canadia Bank is now even more accessible after breaking into the online and mobile banking markets. In October, it launched the two services after months of tight security testing. Canadia Bank customers can now access their accounts to transfer money and carry out other transactions on the go.
Operating in Cambodia since 1991, Canadia Bank serves all aspects of the business arena, from SMEs, which make up about 90% of its customers, to retails and large corporates. The Bank also assists clients set up a company, ensure partners are reliable and evaluate any available investment opportunities.
Foreign companies investing in Cambodia make up a large proportion of its clientele – something Lor believes is directly attributed to Canadia Bank’s emphasis on sound financial practices such as safety and security for its customers.
“We pride ourselves as being a bank that is very focused on strength and safety for our customers. This is important in Cambodia because so many investors who come here want to make sure when they choose a bank, they choose a bank that is reliable, strong and can be depended on for the long-run,” he says.
To ensure it remains reliable, Lor says the Bank is prudent on loans and does not take a reckless or aggressive approach to growing, thus maintaining a steady growth of 20% year-on-year.
“We are an institution more focused on strength and stability rather than pure profitability. It is important that our customers trust us and we want to continue to be the safest bank in Cambodia. We do not take unnecessary risks in our business and we never compromise this aspiration in pursuit of profits.”
He adds, “because of our financial prudence Canadia Bank was recently awarded International Data Group’s 2013 Cambodia Outstanding Banking Awards in the category of the most Outstanding Financial Performance Bank. We are very proud of this.”
For more information on Canadia Bank’s services, visit their website here or call 023 868 222.
