Banking and financial services

The Bank of the Lao PDR (BOL) has issued a new Decision on the setting of currency exchange rates, as a guideline for commercial banks trading in foreign currencies.The move is aimed at enabling commercial banks to operate with a degree of flexibility in the ...

Residents of Vientiane are concerned about another fuel shortage with several petrol stations in the city being closed since Monday.However, the concerned sectors have issued reassurances that fuel will soon be available in sufficient quantities to meet daily demands. The fuel shortage has occurred at ...

The Lao kip has plunged to a record low in recent days against the US dollar and Thai baht despite the government’s attempts to stabilise currency exchange rates.The value of the national currency has nosedived since the end of March, the Governor of the Bank ...

The Bank of the Lao PDR has issued a decision ordering commercial banks and micro-financial institutes to postpone for three months – from May – deadlines for principal and interest payments for those who have borrowed loans for living expenses.  The decision, dated May 13, 2021, ...

VIENTIANE (Vientiane Times/ANN) – The Bank of the Lao PDR (BOL), the country’s central bank, officially launched the new joint venture Lao National Payment Network Co Ltd (LAPNet) in collaboration with seven major banks.The company aims to create a more efficient system of payments and ...

VIENTIANE (Vientiane Times/ANN) – The Bank of the Lao PDR (BOL) and the Bank of Korea (BOK) have agreed to share the outcomes of their seven month-programme – 2019 Bank of Korea-Knowledge Partnership Programme (BOK-KPP) – with interested parties.Following completion of the programme, which began ...

The Lao Government has engaged Standard Chartered, JP Morgan, and Credit Suisse for its planned international US dollar bond debut.In December of 2015, Laos sold US$182m worth of dollar bonds in two tranches to institutional investors in Thailand and regularly issues sovereign bonds denominated in ...

VIENTIANE (Vientiane Times) – Laos’ central bank will tackle challenges to ensure the stability of the kip and prevent it weakening further against the Thai baht, and ensure the rate of inflation stays below 5 per cent.Responding to questions about currency management from National Assembly ...

(KPL) Krungsri Bank, a Thai commercial bank, has launched Krungsri Blockchain Interledger to ensure an easy and real-time money transfer between Laos and Thailand.“Krungsri Blockchain Interledger is a real-time service of international funds transfer between the Lao PDR and Thailand for SMEs. With cutting-edge service, ...

VIENTIANE (Vientiane Times/ANN) – Banque pour le Commerce Exterieur Lao Public (BCEL) is partnering with Swift Pass to enable payments through WeChat Pay and AliPay so that Lao shops and other businesses are more attractive to Chinese customers.An official launch of WeChat Pay and AliPay ...