Cambodia has over $22 billion in currency circulation and digital literacy is on the rise. The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific reports that 15.6 per cent of the population made or received digital payments during 2019, demonstrating the rapid increase in demands for digital infrastructure.

The Southeast Asian nation’s newest commercial bank aims to capture a sizeable market share of tech-savvy consumers as well as those who prefer brick-and-mortar banking experiences. This strategy will see Oriental Bank Plc. engaging in a 60 per cent digital - 40 per cent conventional banking approach.

BPC SmartVista’s platform will be used to power the digital banking experience from Know Your Customer onboarding, deposit account opening, and funds transfers. It will also be used to power seamless and secure end-to-end payment experiences, including QR codes, card issuing, digital loan applications, and other self-service banking channels such as ATM Driving Services.

Datuk Phan Ying Tong, the Founder and MD of Oriental Bank Plc., said: “Oriental Bank is blending technology and the human touch to ensure that we can reach out to customers no matter what touchpoint they use. We selected BPC for their extensive understanding of the local market and their competitive speed in delivering a new bank from the ground up. With BPC, we are relying on a strong local partner that will embrace growth and help us scale.”

With the aim of delivering highly reliable, customer-centric financial products to Cambodia, Oriental Bank Plc. was attracted to the ease of partnering with BPC’s next-generation P2P services that form part of the bank’s ecosystem, including API connections to third parties for instant payment. It was also attracted to BPC’s capability to extend the ecosystem further with added value services as the bank grows.

Terry Paleologos, Managing Director APAC at BPC, commented: “BPC has a strong market share and presence in Cambodia with an established local team who are fully equipped to support clients and partners. The demand for a digital lifestyle is palpable; hence we see major transformation projects. However, building a neobank from the ground up is an even more exciting initiative as the foundation will bring digital-first experience to clients who demand it.” He also added: “We are confident that with this partnership, both Oriental Bank and BPC are paving the path towards greatness, together.”