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08/19/2024

Cambodia's Bakong Tourists App Expands Regional Payment Options

The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) has launched the Bakong Tourists app to expand payment options for visitors through its Bakong blockchain-based payment system. The app will work within China's UnionPay system and in Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos, in addition to Cambodia. Cambodia has only 55,000 point-of-sale (PoS) systems for a population of 16.8 million. Credit cards can't be used without PoS terminals, and there are only 5,600 ATMs nationwide to provide cash access.

Cambodia's Bakong Tourists App Expands Regional Payment Options

The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) has launched the Bakong Tourists app to expand payment options for visitors through its Bakong blockchain-based payment system. The app will work within China's UnionPay system and in Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos, in addition to Cambodia.

Cambodia has only 55,000 point-of-sale (PoS) systems for a population of 16.8 million. Credit cards can't be used without PoS terminals, and there are only 5,600 ATMs nationwide to provide cash access. The Bakong app allows users to make QR code payments at 3.3 million locations.

Expanding Utility with Bakong

Beyond payments, Bakong Tourists also lets users send and receive money, deposit funds into bank accounts, track transactions, and convert between US dollars and Cambodian riel.

Bakong Tourists users will have a spending limit of $500 per day, which can be raised to $3,000 after completing Know Your Customer verification, which requires users to submit a photo and copy of their passport.

The app can be downloaded from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store. Users register with an email address and top up their Bakong account through partners such as banks, hotels, or travel agencies. NBC Governor Chea Serey said the NBC is looking to sign an agreement with an international payment company to link Bakong Tourists accounts with international payment cards.

Serey said agreements are expected to be signed with Malaysia by the end of August and with South Korea in September, allowing users from those countries to link their domestic accounts to Bakong Tourists.

Soramitsu's Vision for Regional Payment Expansion

The NBC launched Bakong in 2020 alongside Japanese blockchain firm Soramitsu. The Bakong system has been used as a model for Laos's DLak, a central bank digital currency (CBDC) launched as a proof of concept in 2023.

Bakong has also been positioned as a foundation for a regional payment system covering India, China, Fiji, and the Solomon Islands, as well as countries where Bakong is already established. Soramitsu has supported the Solomon Islands' Bokolo Cash CBDC and the Reserve Bank of Fiji's research into launching a CBDC in that island nation.

Bakong Tourists download instructions. Source: National Bank of Cambodia