Gov’t allocates $100 million to SME Bank

In a bid to support small businesses in the Kingdom, the government has budgeted $100 million to fund the SME Bank, Prime Minister Hun Sen said last week.

Speaking on Wednesday at a graduation ceremony in Phnom Penh, Mr Hun Sen said he has approved the use of $100 million to set up the bank.

“A few days ago, I signed a document to allocate $100 million to establish the SME Bank,” the prime minister said. He did not provide a date for the bank’s launch.

The Ministry of Economy and Finance announced earlier this year that the SME Bank is expected to come online by the end of 2019.

Spokespeople for the Ministry of Economy and Finance contacted by Khmer Times yesterday could not confirm that the bank’s launch will take place before the end of the year.

Te Taing Por, president of the Federation of Associations for Small and Medium Enterprises of Cambodia, said the goal of the bank is to support local businesses and help them expand.

He said local SMEs often face difficulties accessing loans as many lack collateral.

“To access a loan from the SME Bank, the companies will need to follow proper financial and accounting standards. The SME Bank will conduct workshops to help these firms use loans in the best possible way,” he said.

Heng  Sokong, secretary of state at the Ministry of Industry and Handicrafts, recently said Cambodia has about 520,000 SMEs but that just about 150,000 of them are registered manufacturers.

Micro-enterprises are businesses that employ 10 employees or fewer, while SMEs have more than 11.

Vongsey Visoth, secretary of state at the Ministry of Economy and Finance, said in a previous occasion that the SME Bank will focus on several sectors, including manufacturing, tourism, food processing, and tech startups.

“The bank will enhance access to credit for these companies so that they can strengthen their production chains and export overseas,” he said.(This news came from Khmertimes.com)