2018 marks the ten year anniversary of PPCBank. Which achievements is the bank proudest of?
It comes as no surprise that banking in Cambodia has been going through a rapid growth for the last couple years in terms of how active all financial players have become, as well as how many new payment-related services have emerged. To secure viable stakeholders, the National Bank of Cambodia issued several regulations and we are proud to be one of those complying with it. We’ve increased our paid-up capital, and we are here to increase and grow with our clients.
When financial institutions change shareholders, it can at times make customers uneasy. We are very happy to see that our customers not only didn’t leave us but on the contrary for the last two years we’ve increased our customer base – and referrals from our clients did play a certain role in it.
Since JB & Apro became shareholders in 2016, how has the direction of PPCBank changed? What kind of innovations can customers expect from PPCBank over the next ten years?
It’s an overall global trend for banking to go digital; and Cambodian banking is no stranger to this trend. We’ve launched Mobile Banking last year and smartBiz, our online banking solution, for our corporate clients.
Another step we’ve made is increasing numbers of channels to interact with our customers. More and more people are living on the go; Phnom Penhers are busy people. With our customers’ best interest always on our minds, we’ve made sure to have a 24/7 call centre and live chat option on our website, so our customers don’t need to waste their valuable time by going to an actual branch.
Our customers will always be our number one.
Could you talk about some of the ways in which PPCBank has been working with local fintech providers to transition the bank into a modern financial institution?
Cambodia can be proud to have a few regionally recognized fintech players in its yard. We don’t see them as our competitors. Why? Because if they bring to the table brilliant ideas that improve customer experience, why wouldn’t we want to cooperate with them? Instead of fighting over the piece of pie, we’d rather create synergy.
We’ve partnered with Wing Specialized Bank to make it easier for Cambodian migrant workers send their money back to their families from Korea. We’ve got a solid presence in Korea, and Wing has earned their excellent reputation with Cambodia; by cooperating with Wing, both banked and unbanked were brought into a nice union that benefits all stakeholders.
PPCBank is young, flexible and dynamic. We are not afraid of changes.
