CAMIA: Cambodia’s Mobile Payment Industry

While cash remains the undisputed king in Cambodia, the growth of two “calves” – digital transactions and mobile payments – presents a huge opportunity for fintech companies to serve the unbanked and transform the financial landscape in Cambodia.

In Cambodia, a developing Southeast Asian country with high mobile phone usage and connectivity but low bank penetration, the mobile payments market is hugely attractive.

96% of Cambodians own a mobile phone, with more than 10 million phones in use. According to We Are Social’s 2017 Digital Report, Cambodia’s 173% mobile connectivity is the highest in Southeast Asia, exceeding the regional average of 133% and even Singapore’s 142%.

With only 5% of the population having a bank account, there is a huge opportunity for fintech companies to provide affordable and more convenient financial services through digital platforms. Mobile technology allows these companies to reach Cambodians who do not have access to any basic financial services, thereby promoting their products.

Wing is seizing the opportunity of mobile payments in Cambodia and is a major player in the industry. The company provides Cambodians with a way to send and receive funds using Wing's agent network, Wing Money mobile app and USSD messaging. Wing's products and services support every Cambodian to have access to financial services such as local remittances, phone top-ups, bill payments, WingKet Luy and online payments.

To expand its offering, Wing has partnered with a number of foreign companies, and in June signed a partnership agreement with Malaysian company Valyou to focus on providing mobile wallet remittance services from Malaysia to Cambodia.

The new product allows Cambodians working and living in Malaysia to send money home directly using the Valyou mobile wallet app and 2,500 Valyou agent locations across Malaysia. After the transfer, the money sent can be cashed out in the recipient’s Wing account or can be picked up in cash at more than 5,000 Wing agents across Cambodia.

An estimated 1.5 million Cambodians work as migrant workers abroad, sending nearly $2 billion in remittances each year to families in Cambodia.

Wing signed another partnership agreement with Japan's Sathapana Commercial Bank in June, under which Sathapana Commercial Bank's customers can repay loans or transfer funds through Wing's platform and services. The bank's customers can also transfer money using Wing kiosks from anywhere and at any time via their mobile phones, regardless of whether the recipient has a Wing account.

(Wing Information Kiosk)

A number of mobile payment solutions have emerged in Cambodia since Wing was launched in 2009. For example, ABA Bank’s e-cash service allows remittances to Cambodians without bank accounts, and recipients can withdraw cash from ATMs without using a card.

(ABA Bank Electronic Cash)

Local startup Pi Pay offers a digital payment app that connects customers and merchants. The app has a simple and fun design with custom emojis, aiming to appeal to Cambodia’s young and tech-savvy crowd. The app also has a built-in video chat messaging.

PayGo is another Cambodian mobile payment company. It has partnered with ABA Bank to create a virtual credit card that enables customers to make online payments faster. Other mobile payment companies in Cambodia include True Money, Asia Wei Luy and SmartLuy.

Source: CAMIA