Acleda Bank, which holds nearly 20 percent of the total assets of Cambodia’s banking sector, reported a net profit of $92.5 million last year, down from $127.3 million a year before.

The bank’s 27 percent drop in profit was accompanied by a rise in non-performing loans, and the bank increased its provision for loan losses from $13.6 million in 2016 to $34.2 million last year.

So Phonnary, the bank’s executive vice president and chief operations officer, said the provision for loan losses accounted for the decline in profit.

“In 2017, the price of many agricultural crops were down, lowering the income of people and affecting their ability to pay,” she said. “Clients are still paying us, but not the sufficient amount in the contract.”https://www.phnompenhpost.com/business/acleda-profit-falls-loan-defaults-rise