Phnom Penh (VNA)♍ – The Bank for Investment and Development of Cambodia (BIDC) - a subsidiary of the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) in Cambodia, held a ceremony on September 6 to receive a noble award from the King of Cambodia and celebrate its 15th founding anniversary.

King Norodom Sihamoni awarded the Cambodia Royal Order of Monisaraphon, the highest order of the Cambodian Royal Family to the BIDC. Three leaders of the BIDC were also awarded the Sowathara Order of Mohesana for their contributions to promoting investment and economic development in Cambodia while the bank's General Director was granted the Monisaraphon Order. Speaking at the ceremony, BIDC General Director Lam Van Hai said that bank officially came into operation on September 1, 2009, becoming one of the pioneering Vietnamese enterprises investing in Cambodia. Up to now, BIDC has made strong progress in terms of scale and operational efficiency, becoming a large-scale commercial bank in Cambodia, with total assets reaching over 920 million USD, up 13% year-on-year on average; outstanding credit reaching 650 million USD, up 17% year-on-year; capital mobilisation reaching nearly 600 million USD, up 15% year-on-year. Hai said the bank has played an important role in connecting payments between the Cambodian market with Vietnam and other countries with a variety of payment channels. The BIDC's efforts have actively contributed to promoting the growth of Vietnam-Cambodia trade turnover, turning Vietnam into the country with the most trade transactions with Cambodia. The bank has contributed to unblocking capital flows, promoting Vietnam's investment activities in Cambodia. Currently, Vietnam’s registered investment capital in Cambodia reached nearly 3 billion USD, putting Vietnam in the top five countries in terms of investment in Cambodia. Sum Sannisith, Deputy Governor of the National Bank of Cambodia, affirmed that the BIDC's presence in the country over the past 15 years demonstrated the trust that Vietnamese investors have given to Cambodia’s banking sector and connected the financial markets of the two countries. According to the official, the BIDC has grown and developed successfully as it has been expanding trade cooperation, providing new banking products and services, and enhancing capacity and human resource quality to meet the requirements of the development of banking sector. As of the end of June 2024, the BIDC had total registered capital of 100 million USD and total assets of 924 million USD, expanding its transaction network with seven more branches in Cambodia and two branches in Vietnam. Chairwoman of the Cambodia-Vietnam Friendship Association Men Sam An said that for the last 15 years, the BIDC has integrated and built a strong reputation in the Cambodian market with stable business activities, increased market share and actively contributed to the economic development of Cambodia. In addition to business development, the bank has always paid attention to supporting social security, charity, health care, education and training, poverty reduction, rural development activities in Cambodia, she said./.