Cambodia–India Launch Phase 1 of Cross-Border Payment Connection Enabling Indian Travellers to Make UPI Payments Scanning KHQR

Cambodia and India officially launched Phase 1 of cross-border QR code payments on June 2, 2026, at the Rosewood Phnom Penh, enabling Indian travellers to scan and make payments using KHQR codes. 

The launch ceremony was presided over by H.E. Dr. Chea Serey, Governor of the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC), H.E. Vanlalvawna Bawitlung, Ambassador of the Republic of India to Cambodia, along with representatives from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), ACLEDA Bank Plc. and NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL).

The launch of cross-border QR code payments is expected to stimulate trade, business growth, and tourism between the two countries, by offering a secure, interoperable, and frictionless payment experience via UPI and KHQR, significantly enhancing convenience for consumers in both markets.

The NBC nominated ACLEDA Bank as the sponsoring bank and operator for Cambodia’s national QR network, Bakong (KHQR), and has been working in partnership with NIPL to enable UPI acceptance across Cambodia, and KHQR acceptance across India. 

The launch of Phase 1 — "Indians Scan Cambodia's KHQR Code" — marks a significant milestone, strengthening regional and international financial connectivity, and establishing a modern "Digital Corridor" between Cambodia and India. Tourists from India can now use their UPI-enabled apps to make merchant payments easily at more than 4.5 million KHQR merchant touch points in Cambodia.

In the next phase, Cambodian tourists in India will be able to scan more than 710 million UPI QRs to make merchant payments conveniently using their Cambodian payment apps.

“The NBC has been building bilateral cross-border payment connections with neighbouring countries and international payment networks to support the tourism and trade sectors," affirmed H.E. Dr Chea Serey, in her congratulatory remarks. “Each new corridor we open is not just a convenience, it is a hedge. It is a node in a more distributed, more resilient global payment architecture. When two countries can settle directly in their own system through their own infrastructure, they are less exposed to the disruptions that affect any single network. 

The Indian-Cambodian corridor is one more thread in the fabric of connectivity that makes both our economies stronger, not just individually, but together. This is the deeper meaning of what we are doing today. We are not simply reducing friction for tourists, we are building one corridor at a time; a payment architecture for an Asia that is more integrated, more sovereign, and more resilient.

“The establishment of cross-border payment connectivity holds significant promise for improving transaction efficiency, reducing friction, minimising the associated cost, and enhancing convenience for the consumers, merchants, business travellers,” said Saswat Kumar Mahapatra, General Manager at the Reserve Bank of India. “For travellers between Cambodia and India, seamless and secure digital payments acceptance can improve the payment experience significantly. They can use the app they are comfortable with, what they normally use in the domestic market for making transactions. This will go forward in supporting tourism and economic engagement between our two countries.”

“By integrating the payment gateways of Cambodia and India, we are removing transactional friction and foreign exchange volatility for travellers,” added Dr In Channy, President & Group Managing Director of ACLEDA Bank Plc. "This synergy empowers local merchants by providing direct access to a high-velocity digital market, optimising liquidity management, and enhancing operational throughput via secure, real-time settlement protocols. Ultimately, this collaboration drives financial inclusion and strengthens the bilateral economic corridor through robust, scalable technology."

Ritesh Shukla, MD & CEO, NPCI International, said, "At NPCI International, our aim is to extend India's digital payment innovations to global markets through trusted partnerships. Enabling UPI acceptance in Cambodia marks a significant milestone in this journey. It ensures that Indian travellers enjoy a familiar, secure and seamless payment experience abroad, while Cambodian merchants gain access to millions of digital-first consumers. This collaboration not only strengthens real-time payment connectivity between our two ecosystems but also lays the groundwork for deeper tourism and commercial engagement."