Can you give us a brief history of MekongBank since its formation and significant developments over the past four years?

Mekong Bank began operations in May 1999. It is licensed to provide all forms of domestic and international banking services. The Bank's clients include prominent local and international businesses as well as multinational corporations with investments in Cambodia .

I am the controlling shareholder and work as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Bank. The Chairman of MekongBank's Board is Michael C. Stephen, an American with many years of international commercial and investment banking experience. Outside directors are Bretton G. Sciaroni, a US citizen and an attorney who has been resident of Cambodia for more than ten years; and Tay Kah Chye, a Singaporean who is President & CEO of ASEAN Finance Corporation and also Secretary General of the ASEAN Bankers Association.

In 1998, MekongBank became the first bank in Cambodia to provide on- line processing for credit card transactions and in 2001 was the first financial institution in Cambodia to issue credit cards in its own name.

Can you comment on the performance of your bank in terms of figures? (employees, branches, capital deposited, turnover, etc…)

As of 31 December 2002 MekongBank had total assets of US$18.5 million and paid in capital of US$13 million. We have three banking offices in Phnom Penh and one each in Sihanoukville and Siem Reap (with plans to open in Battambang during 2003). In addition, we have ''money exchange counters'' located in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. Total staff is 96 for all locations.

In addition to the standard services offered by most banks, you have also introduced the credit card system to customers in Cambodia. Which additional new products do you plan to introduce to the Cambodian market in the near and medium term?

We have two important initiatives under development at the present time. One is Privileged Banking, which is designed to provide a high level of service to individual customers. The other is Wholesale Banking, which will be aimed at large corporate clients and financial institutions. This entails transaction processing and other technology based services. Both of these initiatives are in line with our strategy to combine the most advance IT systems of any bank in Cambodia with a customised approach to client relationships.

How is your bank positioning itself in the Cambodian market and what will your strategy be over the next few years? Are you looking for partners?

Stemming largely from our deep involvement in the credit card business, MekongBank has been a pioneer in the use of technology in banking services in Cambodia. We have made a substantial and continuing investments in Information Technology, and plan to take advantage of its superior technological capabilities by offering transaction- processing services to corporations and financial institutions in Cambodia and the region.

It is also a fundamental policy of MekongBank to become Cambodia's leading international financial institution. We have established correspondent relations with major international banks in Europe, Asia and the United States. For example, through our principle international correspondent and strategic partner, ABN-AMRO Bank, we have access to their global network of over 3,500 locations in 76 countries. Another critical element in MekongBank's international policy involves the establishment of strategic alliances with key financial institutions throughout the region.

MekongBank also participates actively in efforts to promote the development of the banking industry in Cambodia. In addition to its involvement with the Association of Banks in Cambodia, senior management and members of the Board maintain a continuing dialogue with business and government leaders in Cambodia and the region.

You are also president of the association of banks in Cambodia. When was this organization established; how many members does it have now; what are its main activities and objectives?

The Association currently has 23 members, consisting of local and foreign banks. We began to organise ourselves in 1994 and are now fully recognised under the banking Act. Our chief functions are to share information among members, to participate in joint activities such as training and to act as a single voice for the industry in dealing with the public and the Royal Government. We are also members of the ASEAN Bankers Association, which has been of great benefit to individual banks and to the Cambodian banking system as a whole.

As president of the Association, as well as the Chief Executive of an important local bank, what do you see as the major strengths and weaknesses of the Cambodian banking sector today ?

The Cambodian banking industry (with the exception of the Foreign Trade bank) is private sector and represents a healthy mix of local and foreign owned institutions. We are adequately capitalised and backed by a strong regulatory system. We are well positioned to provide the financial backing for future growth in the Cambodian private sector. We are also increasingly integrated into the regional and global international financial system.
Countering this is the relatively undeveloped state of the financial infrastructure. For example, we still do not have a viable market for interbank lending or marketable Government securities that are essential to the development of a local capital market. We also need a much better legal and judicial framework in which to conduct our business.

All of these things and more are contemplated in the ADB's 10 year Financial Blue Print, but we are still in the first stages of implementation .

Please tell us more about your personal background and career.

I am a Cambodian national and received my education in Thailand, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States. I returned to Cambodia in 1992 and have been the CEO of MekongBank since its founding in 1994.

Although the bank is my principle occupation, I also spend a fair amount of time working on regional matters. I am firm believer in mutual co-operation and greater integration among ASEAN financial institutions. In pursuit of these interests I travel frequently throughout Asia, as well as in Europe and the united States.