BOL moves on electronic finance provision
BOL moves on electronic finance provision
The Bank of the Lao PDR is stepping up to foster access to digital finance services in Laos, targeting rural residents nationwide.
A second consultancy meeting was held in Vientiane to review the progress of the implementation of digital finance services in Laos.
Deputy Director General of the Financial Institution Supervision Department under the Bank of the Lao PDR, Mr Visone Saysongkham, chaired the meeting.
“The government is supporting the provision of digital finance services to poor people in both urban and rural areas in a bid to alleviate poverty,” he said.
To achieve the goals, a jointly sponsored project by the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), entitled ‘Making Access to Finance more Inclusive for Poor People (MAFIPP)' is currently being implemented by BOL.
“Digital finance services are one of the activities in the MAFIPP, which has been approved by the government and receives financial support from the government of Australia,” Mr Visone said.
He said the consultancy meeting allowed participants from government organisations, businesses and telecoms companies to understand the procedures required in rolling out digital services and various agreements in relations to the provision of financial services.
Financial service programmes are actively engaged in building an environment where Laos permits and promotes digital finance services or branchless banking as a means to achieve financial inclusion for the majority of Lao people.
They are being rolled out across the world as a way to bring financial services to underserved populations and improve social security through a secure savings instrument.
BOL and its development partners are set to see more than 250,000 regular users of digital financial services in Laos by the end of 2017, making the country's financial services more ready for Asean Economic Community integration at the end of this year.
“The meeting paves a positive way for participants to understand more about how digital finance services are working as well as learning about the steps involved in the electronic finance system,” Mr Visone said.
Well-experienced financial personnel from different telecoms companies in Laos as well as international digital finance experts were invited to share their experiences with other representatives from the business sector, government and non-government organisations.
In Laos, the number of commercial banks has increased year on year but financial access in rural communities remains a serious issue.
2014 statistics show that 37 banks are registered with BOL while there are almost 90 branches and over 400 service units nationwide.
As the country's economy continues to grow annually, more and more foreign banks are opening in Laos, which in turn draws more investors to do business here.
