Finance !!!

Hi Pete.
In Cambodia the best way is Cash (usd) and Creditcard for the ATM's.
Please note that bigger bills like 20's, 50's and 100's will only be accepted in high end turist hotels and such.
Also note that due to a high degree of counterfed money, bills that are not in good condition will not get accepted by locals.
So keep your Cash safe and try not to fold them to much. Be aware of your change. It can be counterfed and that can be hard to see at night.

Safe travels

/Henry

Very interesting ! Thank you for help.......

if you come from Europe and you use maestro (European little brother of mastercard) atmcard,do not forget to go to your bank to open the card  for outside de European borders or it will not work here.just a tip

Thank you ....would you know about visa debit cards ......these we use all the time here and in Europe.......the cards are issued from our own banks ie....Ulster ..AIB ...Bank of Ireland ....Your advice is most welcome........ Cheers Pete

Visa Debit Cards are accepted by most banks ATM's in Cambodia. Just look for the Visa logo.

VISA Debit cards work well in Cambodia. There are plenty of ATM's. Just remember to notify your bank before you go so that the card does not get locked. Another tip is when withdrawing if you need smallish notes then dont withdraw $100 you might get a single note...better to withdraw $90 so you get a mixture of notes. Also be aware that most ATMs will charge a $4 or $5 Fee and also your own bank will charge for International withdrawal- mine charges $2.50 AUD

Debit cards in ATMs work all over Asia as long as they have the right logos on them. All the "visa" and other common cards work pretty much everywhere, but can fail in some machines.

Avoid using credit cards as the foreign cash fees and exchange rates tend to be really poor.

Cash works everywhere, but you have to be very careful if you have a lot of it.
Use a hidden belt wallet for the majority of it, keeping only day money in your pocket.

The withdrawal fee at the ATMs is annoying. It comes on top of the fee that you home bank charges. Also, there's a cap of $500 that you can withdraw per transaction.

Vietnam is even worse; most banks have a cap of about $50 or $60, plus a $5 transaction fee, so that you effectively pay another 10% on top. For both countries, bringing cash is a much better option.

If you bring cash, better avoid Irish Pounds, and bring Bank of England notes only. You can exchange them to USD at the major FX shops in Phnom Penh at a much better rate than in the UK. Avoid currency exchange at the banks here. Their rates are a rip-off. Bank rates in Vietnam are usually okay though.

Also, don't bother to exchange large amounts into Riels. (For Tuk Tuk rides, market shopping, stamps etc. I prefer to always some Riels handy, but some expats prefer to pay everything everywhere in USD - a matter of personal preference...)