The Ministry of Commerce has tapped Wing (Cambodia) Ltd Specialised Bank to be the fourth financial institution designated to handle payments for companies incorporated using the ministry’s online registration system.

Commerce Minister Pan Sorasak signed a nondisclosure agreement yesterday with Kith Meng, Wing’s president and board director, to facilitate information exchange for the new partnership. The two parties intend to work together to connect their IT systems.

Wing follows three other banks – Acleda Bank, Canadia Bank and Foreign Trade Bank (FTB) – appointed by the ministry to handle payment processing for the online business registry platform launched last December.

Over 10,000 companies have incorporated or re-registered their businesses using the automated service.“We are providing more options for businesses to fulfil their obligation [to register online],” Sorasak said.

“Earlier, we partnered with major banks and we think our [automated registry service] can serve a large number of businesses already. But we are partnering with more banks because we want to provide even more options.”

Chhun Vattanak Phakdey, Wing’s enterprise business director, said his team was working actively on the project and that businesses would be able to make payments using Wing’s network of 4,000 agents nationwide before the end of the year.

“Our agents work seven days a week so this is very helpful for businesses,” he said. “They can manage their time and make payments whenever it is convenient.”

Keo Mom, president of Cambodia Women Entrepreneurs Association (CWEA), said the addition of more third-party payment providers would encourage small businesses to register online.

“When more choices are offered, it encourages us to complete our duty without complications,” she said.