Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ looks into Cambodian financial sector

PHNOM PENH, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ officially launched its representative office here on Friday, aimied at boosting trade and investment ties between Japan and Cambodia, said a bank's senior official.
Masato Miyachi, general manager of the bank's Asia and China Division, said that the bank's decision to open the office here was made after it observed that Cambodia's economy had seen stable growth in recent years and the interest in exploring Cambodia's market is increasing among Japanese companies.
"With our office here, we will be able to strengthen the ability of information gathering, market penetration in order to support Japanese companies who want to do businesses in Cambodia," he said at the launching ceremony.
Until now, the bank has already set up the branch and representative offices in Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar and Cambodia.
Speaking at the event, Neav Chanthana, vice-governor of the National Bank of Cambodia, said the bank's presence here reflected Japanese investors' trust on Cambodia's banking industry and political stability.
So far, she said, the country has 4 foreign banks' representative offices, 32 commercial banks, 7 specialized banks, 32 microfinance institutions and 29 rural credit operators.
Japan is one of Cambodia's key donors; however, the country's investment in Cambodia is still relatively small. According to the figure of the Council for the Development of Cambodia, this Southeast Asian nation had attracted 3 investment projects worth only 6 million U.S. dollars from Japan last year.