Cambodia sees US$100 million co-financing scheme fund for SMEs fully subscribed

A SME enterprise co-financing scheme fund totalling US$100 million has been fully subscribed by mid-October last year, benefitting 753 SMEs, according to the SME Bank of Cambodia.

The fund was launched on April 1 last year by Cambodia’s Ministry of Economy and Finance, and was jointly funded by the SME Bank of Cambodia, participating commercial banks and microfinance institutions, which are organisations that provide loans to low-income clients who traditionally lack access to funding such as banks. 

The average loan taken by SMEs amounted to US$122,514, with a minimum of US$16,800, and a maximum of US$300,000, according to the Khmer Times.

Some 50% of loans were subscribed by manufacturers of local consumable goods, waste recyclers, as well as goods for the tourism sector. 

Another 27% were taken up by food manufacturing and processing firms, while 13% went to manufacturers of finished products, spare parts or assembly parts to supply other manufacturers. 

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Meanwhile, 11% were taken up enterprises in SME cluster zones, and research and development firms related to IT, or the supply of IT-based services.

There are currently 33 participating institutions providing the co-financing scheme: 24 commercial banks, six specialised banks, and three microfinance institutions.