- Increasing Convenience of Using Bakong
- Launch and Registration
- Soramitsu’s Expanding Regional Vision
The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) has launched the Bakong Tourists app to extend visitors’ payment options through its blockchain-based Bakong payment system.
Increasing Convenience of Using Bakong
In addition to purchases, Bakong Tourists allows users to send and receive money, deposit funds into their bank accounts, track transactions and convert funds between US dollars and Cambodian riels. Bakong Tourists users will have a spending limit of $500 a day, which can be raised to $3,000 after the user undergoes Know Your Customer verification, which requires a photo and copy of the user’s passport.
Launch and Registration
The app can be downloaded from the Google or Apple stores. Users register by email and add funds to their Bakong accounts through a partner, such as a bank, hotel or travel agent. NBC governor Chea Serey said NBC is looking to make an agreement with an international settlement company to link Bakong Tourists accounts with international payment cards.
Soramitsu’s Expanding Regional Vision
NBC launched Bakong in 2020 in conjunction with the Japanese blockchain Soramitsu. The Bakong system was used as the model for the Lao DLak, a central bank digital currency (CBDC) that was launched as a proof-of-concept in 2023. Bakong was also envisioned as the base for a regional payment system that would encompass India, China, Fiji and the Solomon Islands, as well as the countries the Bakong has already been established.
The launch of the Bakong Tourists app demonstrates the National Bank of Cambodia's commitment to expanding and streamlining payment systems for tourists in the region using advanced blockchain technology.
