T&S Asset Management

NBC rejects bank-instability rumours, citing first-half deposits of USD 64.4bn

Published Data as of CambodiaCompetition & capital

Key points

Facts

Statement: on 2 October 2026 the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) dismissed social-media claims that banking institutions face difficulties as "baseless and misleading", said such reports risk undermining confidence in the banking system, urged the relevant authorities to take legal action against those spreading them, and asked the public to rely on official channels. Source: AKP (2026-10-02).

Figures cited (end-June 2026): customer deposits of USD 64.4bn, up 4.4% (NBC; comparison period not stated) 1; customer loans of USD 64.2bn, +4.6% y/y 2; capital of USD 10.5bn, up 3% (NBC; comparison period not stated) 3; and a non-performing loan ratio of 9.6% 4. Source: AKP (2026-10-02).

Restructuring: at its first-half review on 27 July 2026 the NBC said banking-system assets reached USD 99.8bn, up 2.5% (NBC; comparison period not stated) 5, and that 239,546 loan accounts 6 worth USD 4.8bn 7, or 7.5% of the loan portfolio 8, had been restructured, with these measures being phased out gradually. Source: AKP (2026-07-28).

Context: in March 2026 the NBC denied earlier online claims of frozen funds and revoked licences (Kiripost, 2026-03-16). On 3 August it revoked the licences of three banks 9, and on 21 September it placed Chief Bank under provisional administration for three months 10.

Analysis

Over time, the two asset-quality measures are moving in opposite directions. The restructured share fell from 8.3% at end-2025 11 to 7.5% in June 2026, and restructured loans from USD 5.3bn to USD 4.8bn, while the NPL ratio rose to 9.6% (up from 8.4% at end-June 2025). That pattern is consistent with forbearance being unwound: part of the restructured book returns to normal servicing and part migrates into NPLs. The chart shows the NPL ratio's semi-annual path.

The NBC's answer to the rumours is balance-sheet growth rather than new liquidity facilities: deposits and loans both grew at mid-single-digit rates and capital was up 3% (NBC; comparison period not stated). Supervisory action against individual banks has become a recurring event this year, and each case gives social-media claims something to attach to. For lenders, the relevant risk is less a system-wide run than deposit migration from smaller or weaker institutions towards large banks, which raises funding costs for exactly the lenders most active in small-ticket and rural credit.

NPL ratio reported by NBC (%)
02.557.5107.42024-128.42025-068.92025-129.62026-06
NPL ratio reported by NBC (%)
2024-127.4
2025-068.4
2025-128.9
2026-069.6

NPL ratio of banks and financial institutions as published by NBC. End-2024 and end-2025 from annual reports; June 2025 and June 2026 from semi-annual reports (June 2025 is the prior-year comparison in the H1 2026 report). Values taken from media reports of the NBC publications. Each point confirmed on 2026-09-28 against the cited reports (TheBetterCambodia/gbmfi for end-2024 and end-2025; Xinhua for June 2025 and June 2026). · Source: NBC Annual Report 2025 (end-2024 and 2025 values); NBC semi-annual report H1 2026 as reported by Xinhua (June 2025 and June 2026 values)

Implications

ExecutivesPrepare a depositor-communication plan for rumour episodes that cites regulator data, as the NBC statements now recur.
InvestorsTrack deposit concentration and funding costs at smaller banks and MFIs; the NPL trend and restructuring run-off matter more than headline growth.
OperatorsFlag accounts leaving restructuring status for early-warning monitoring in the first months after normal repayments resume.

Counterpoints and uncertainties

The release does not state the comparison period for the deposit, capital and asset growth rates. The NBC Annual Report 2025 put deposits at about USD 66bn at end-2025 12 under its own definition, using estimates based on data to November, so the two releases alone do not show whether deposits grew or shrank in the first half. The restructuring figures compare accounts with customers, and the share of restructured loans that will become NPLs is not disclosed.

Figures: see definitions

  1. Customer deposits (NBC, semi-annual): USD 64.4bn (up 4.4% (NBC; comparison period not stated))
    The NBC release gives KHR 257.4 trillion (USD 64.4bn) and growth of 4.4% without stating the comparison period. The NBC Annual Report 2025 gave KHR 263 trillion at end-2025 under its own deposit definition (2025 figures were estimates based on data to November), so the two levels are not presented on the same basis.
    . Customer deposits, KHR 257.4 trillion, as cited by the NBC. Banks and financial institutions supervised by NBC. Basis date: 30 Jun 2026. Source: AKP: NBC Refutes Rumors of Instability in Cambodia’s Banking System (2026-10-02)
  2. Total loans (NBC, semi-annual): USD 64.2bn (+4.6% y/y)
    NBC primary document not located on nbc.gov.kh; figure as reported by Xinhua from the NBC semi-annual report released 28 July 2026.
    . Outstanding loans. Banks and financial institutions supervised by NBC. Basis date: 30 Jun 2026. Source: NBC semi-annual report H1 2026 (via Xinhua, 2026-07-28)
  3. Banking-system capital (NBC, semi-annual): USD 10.5bn (up 3% (NBC; comparison period not stated)). Total capital of the banking system, KHR 42 trillion, as cited by the NBC. Banks and financial institutions supervised by NBC. Basis date: 30 Jun 2026. Source: AKP: NBC Refutes Rumors of Instability in Cambodia’s Banking System (2026-10-02)
  4. NBC NPL ratio (semi-annual, latest): 9.6% (up from 8.4% at end-June 2025)
    NBC primary document not located on nbc.gov.kh; figure as reported by Xinhua from the NBC semi-annual report released 28 July 2026.
    . Non-performing loans as a share of total loans, banking system. Banks and financial institutions supervised by NBC. Basis date: 30 Jun 2026. Source: NBC semi-annual report H1 2026 (via Xinhua, 2026-07-28)
  5. Banking-system assets (NBC, semi-annual): USD 99.8bn (up 2.5% (NBC; comparison period not stated)). Total banking-system assets, KHR 399.3 trillion, per the NBC first-half review. Banks and financial institutions supervised by NBC. Basis date: 30 Jun 2026. Source: AKP: Cambodia’s Banking System Remains Healthy Despite External Risks (NBC H1 2026 review, 2026-07-28)
  6. Restructured loan accounts (NBC, semi-annual): 239,546 loan accounts. Number of loan accounts restructured, per the NBC Governor (accounts, not customers). Banks and financial institutions supervised by NBC. Basis date: 30 Jun 2026. Source: AKP: Cambodia’s Banking System Remains Healthy Despite External Risks (NBC H1 2026 review, 2026-07-28)
  7. Restructured loans (NBC, semi-annual): USD 4.8bn (down from USD 5.3bn at end-2025). Combined value of restructured loan accounts, per the NBC Governor. Banks and financial institutions supervised by NBC. Basis date: 30 Jun 2026. Source: AKP: Cambodia’s Banking System Remains Healthy Despite External Risks (NBC H1 2026 review, 2026-07-28)
  8. NBC restructured loans ratio (semi-annual): 7.5% (down from 8.3% at end-2025)
    Stated by the NBC Governor at the 27 July 2026 first-half review; the NBC said these measures are being phased out gradually. Both this value and the end-2025 8.3% are restructured loans as a share of total loans; the end-2025 figure comes from the NBC Annual Report 2025 (estimates based on data to November 2025, 252,868 customers), while the H1 2026 count is in loan accounts.
    . Value of restructured loan accounts as a share of the total loan portfolio, per the NBC Governor. Banks and financial institutions supervised by NBC. Basis date: 30 Jun 2026. Source: AKP: Cambodia’s Banking System Remains Healthy Despite External Risks (NBC H1 2026 review, 2026-07-28)
  9. Banks whose licences the NBC revoked on 3 August 2026: three. CCU Commercial Bank, Heng Feng Cambodia Bank and HH Bank; licences revoked and liquidation ordered. Commercial banks. Basis date: 3 Aug 2026. Source: AKP: NBC Revokes Licenses of Three Banks (2026-08-03)
  10. Provisional administration period, Chief (Cambodia) Commercial Bank: three months
    Provisional administrator: Baker Tilly (Cambodia) Plc, as reported by the Phnom Penh Post. The NBC statement itself was not retrieved.
    . Period of NBC-ordered provisional administration announced on 21 September 2026. One commercial bank. Basis date: 21 Sep 2026. Source: Phnom Penh Post: NBC places Chief Bank under administration (2026-09-21)
  11. NBC restructured loans ratio: 8.3% (up from 3% in 2024)
    NBC Annual Report 2025, p. 45: KHR 21.1 trillion (USD 5.3 billion), about 8.3% of total loans, 252,868 customers, restructured under NBC forbearance measures for customers facing temporary financial difficulties; the report does not separate restructurings linked to the 2025 border conflict. 2024 value from the Graph 69 data label. NBC labels its 2025 figures estimates based on actual data up to November 2025.
    . Restructured loans as a share of total banking-system loans. Banks and financial institutions supervised by NBC. Basis date: 31 Dec 2025. Source: NBC Annual Report 2025 (published 2026-01-23)
  12. Total deposits (NBC): about USD 66bn (+14.7% y/y)
    NBC Annual Report 2025, Graphs 56 and 58: KHR 263 trillion, up 14.7%. USD value is a T&S conversion at the 2025 average rate of KHR 4,011 per USD (about USD 65.6bn); press reports of the NBC release gave USD 65.7bn. NBC labels its 2025 figures estimates based on actual data up to November 2025.
    . Deposits in the banking system. Banks and financial institutions supervised by NBC. Basis date: 31 Dec 2025. Source: NBC Annual Report 2025 (published 2026-01-23)

Sources

  1. AKP: NBC Refutes Rumors of Instability in Cambodia’s Banking System (2026-10-02)
  2. AKP: Cambodia’s Banking System Remains Healthy Despite External Risks (2026-07-28)
  3. NBC Annual Report 2025primary
  4. Kiripost: NBC Denies Rumors of Bank Fund Freezes (2026-03-16)
  5. Phnom Penh Post: NBC places Chief Bank under administration (2026-09-21)

Reports are for information only and are not investment advice.

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