AKP Phnom Penh, February 24, 2025 --

H.E. Dr. Chea Serey, Governor of the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC), received here late last week Professor Ricardo Hausmann, Founding Director of Harvard’s Growth Lab, and a delegation from the Cambodia-Australia Partnership for Resilient Economic Development (CAPRED) Programme, for a courtesy call and working discussion.

The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the economic and banking sector situation, monetary policy, and payment system development in Cambodia.

During the meeting, Professor Ricardo Hausmann highlighted the development of the Cambodian economy, which has grown by approximately 6 percent, the impact of the construction sector on the banking sector, obstacles preventing the agricultural sector from growing rapidly, the Cambodian exchange rate regime, and the use of the Riel, the Cambodian currency.

In response, H.E. Dr. Chea Serey noted that despite the rapid growth of her economy, Cambodia faces many uncertainties, particularly the increase in non-performing loans.

However, the NBC has allowed loan restructuring since the COVID-19 crisis and expects this situation to improve in the future.

Meanwhile, the Royal Government and the NBCF have been paying more attention to implementing measures that will contribute to supporting the agricultural sector to grow, she added.

The NBC continues to promote the use of Riel and maintain a stable exchange rate of the Riel against the U.S. dollar to contribute to maintaining price stability and protecting the purchasing power of the people, she said.

The central bank governor also informed her guests about the NBC’s efforts to continue developing a more diverse payment system, both domestically and internationally, with a number of central banks currently studying Cambodia’s experience.

By Chea Vannak