B14-017-161 P.K
Prakas on the Management of Payment Service Institutions
The licensing regime for non-bank payment service institutions in Cambodia — the instrument a payments business, e-wallet or remittance operator is licensed under, and the foundation the later Bakong and cryptoasset rules are built on top of.
- Issuer
- National Bank of Cambodia
- Issued
- 14 June 2017
- Effective
- 14 June 2017
- Legal force
- In forceTakes effect from its signing date.
- Sectors
- Payments · E-money
- Verified
Who it binds
Legal persons intending to provide payment services in Cambodia. Any such person must hold an NBC licence.
What it requires
- A licence from the National Bank of Cambodia before conducting payment services in Cambodia.
- Covers services enabling deposit and withdrawal of money in payment accounts; carrying out payment transactions including transfers of funds; issuing payment instruments including electronic money; domestic and overseas transfers; and other payment services as the NBC defines.
- Stated purposes are the safety and reliability of payment services, fair competition and innovation, and public confidence in payment services.
What it does not cover
The limits of an instrument decide whether it applies to you, and are rarely published. These are stated from the instrument itself.
- Banking activity. A payment service institution licence is not a banking licence, and the two sit under different parts of the Law on Banking and Financial Institutions.
- Cryptoasset services. Those were brought in separately by Prakas B7-024-735 in December 2024, which added a CASP licence and cross-refers back to this Prakas.
- Digital assets held for investment. That is SERC territory under Prakas 093.
- E-commerce permits and licences, which are a Ministry of Commerce matter under Sub-Decree 134 and Prakas 290 and are commercial rather than financial.
Sources
- Prakas NBC14-017-161 on Payment Service Institutions — Khmer text (PDF)National Bank of Cambodia · primary source
- Prakas on the Management of Payment Service Institution — official recordCambodia National Trade Repository · primary source
- Cited by number and title in the preamble to Prakas B7-024-735 (official English translation, PDF)National Bank of Cambodia · primary source
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