The government has vowed to tighten control over the Kingdom’s pawnshops to ensure professionalism in the sector, which has grown rapidly and lacks a supervisory framework. Mey Vann, director of the Department of Industry and Finance at the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), said at the release of the government’s 10-year financial sector development strategy last week that there has been a proliferation of pawnshops in recent years and it was now to time to establish clearer laws to regulate the sector. While he could not provide details on the regulations under consideration, nor a timeline for when the legislation would be finalized, he announced that the government would increase data collection to monitor and analyze the activities of pawnbrokers nationwide. The government first issued regulations in 2010 that allowed pawnshops to operate as licensed businesses, granting them the authority to buy and sell goods as well as use land and property titles for collateral. According to the financial sector development strategy for 2016 to 2025, since 2010 to the middle of last year, a total of 328 licensed pawnshops loaned a combined $37mn to customers. (Source: Phnom Penh Post)