Harrison White
ABA Bank has been awarded the “Best Bank in Cambodia 2022” by Euromoney, for the ninth consecutive year.
The finance magazine applauded ABA for its innovative banking solutions, solid expansion, and remarkable growth. The decision of the judging panel is also supported by ABA’s recent significant development and enhancement of its state-of-the-art digital platform.
Commenting on the award, Askhat Azhikhanov, the CEO of ABA Bank, said: “It is our ninth consecutive top title from Euromoney, which proves ABA’s leading position in Cambodia to deliver innovative and beneficial financial products and services to our valuable customers.
“We dedicate this award to all our clients and thank them for their trust in ABA.”
Launched in 1996, ABA Bank holds the long-term issuer credit rating “B+” with a Stable outlook from Standard & Poor’s Global Ratings Agency and is a subsidiary of the National Bank of Canada that currently holds around $289 billion in global assets.
ABA is now the largest commercial bank as well as achieving the title of the most profitable in Cambodia earning $216 million in after-tax profit for 2021 after a 42% year-on-year profit growth.
To read more about ABA’s 2021 results click here.
ABA is also the largest commercial bank in Cambodia in terms of total assets, gross loans, customer deposits, and profitability based on the National Bank of Cambodia’s Annual Supervision Report 2021.
ABA has recorded assets at $7.86 billion accounting for 13.2% of the total $59.3 billion of total assets held in Cambodia’s banking sector.
The top 10 banks in Cambodia reported a combined before-tax-profit profit of over $698 million with the top 3 banks ABA, Acleda, and Canadia accounting for almost two-thirds (65%).
Cambodia’s ‘Number 1’ digital bank
Driving ABA’s success has been its strong investment and commitment to digital payments with many considering its mobile payment application the best in Cambodia’s rapidly developing financial sector.
The application is now the most widely used mobile payment application recording almost $100 billion in digital transactions.
To read more about e-payments in Cambodia click here.
Last year, ABA stated it had built a fully equipped standalone data storage center in Phnom Penh to securely store all data backups as well as improve the resilience of its digital platforms.
Investment in self-banking infrastructure has also allowed ABA to rapidly increase lending and loan accounts over the last two years while maintaining staff numbers from 6,410 staff at the end of 2019 to 6,372 today.
Cambodia’s banking sector is increasingly becoming more competitive with over 60 commercial banks as well as many more specialized and microfinance lenders operating in a market of 16 million people.
Stephen Higgins the founder and Managing Partner of Mekong Strategic Partners told Cambodia Investment Review that ABA had clearly been very successful, but the sector was also becoming a much more crowded market.
“ABA Banks’ share of finance sector revenue for 2021 was 13%, whereas around five years ago, Acleda Bank had the leading share of approximately 20%,” Higgins explained.
Cambodia’s banking industry is tipping the regulator will increase the relatively low minimum capital requirement of $75 million to $150 million or more to encourage consolidation in the sector.
ABA increased its registered capital from $520 million to $660 million this year.
