RoK's largest bank launches in Cambodia

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Mon. May 11, 2009

Phnom Penh May 09, May 09, 2009 (Asia Pulse Data Source via COMTEX) -- Kookmin Bank, the biggest lender in the Republic of Korea (RoK), opens first outlet in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, to boost regional presence, a local newspaper said on May 9.

"Kookmin Bank Cambodia is the fifth commercial bank from the RoK [in Cambodia], whose total share capital is 100 percent held by Korean shareholders," Chea Chanto, governor of the National Bank of Cambodia, was

quoted by the Phnom Penh post as saying at the launch on May 7.

He added that Kookmin's entrance reflects returning confidence in Cambodia's

banking sector among Korean investors.

"We are the lender in Korea, and we plan to extend the unit's customer base from local companies to Cambodian investors by introducing private banking and other retail services," Sohn Young Hwan, senior executive vice president

of Kookmin Bank, was quoted as saying.

"We'll focus our loans on small and medium enterprises," he said, adding that Kookmin Bank Cambodia is a joint-venture between Kookmin Bank Korea and Khmer Union Bank of Cambodia, with Kookmin holding a 51-percent stake. The venture was set up in July last year and changed its name to Kookmin Bank Cambodia. The rest of the shares are held by the Republic of Korean manufacturers including KTC Kyung An Cable, Taihan Electric Wire and Posco Engineering and Construction.