A genuinely bi-currency market
Cambodia is one of the most dollarised economies in the world. Salaries, rent, imports, and B2B invoices are commonly priced in USD, while small retail, taxes, and government fees are denominated in KHR. Many businesses operate dual price lists and accept either currency at the till.
This makes daily life convenient but creates real accounting complexity. A single transaction can involve a USD invoice, a KHR cash receipt, and a USD bank deposit — three legs, two currencies, one journal entry.
Choosing a functional currency
Each entity should select a functional currency that reflects the primary economic environment in which it operates. For most SMEs in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap this is USD; for businesses serving rural Cambodia or the government, KHR is often more appropriate.
Once chosen, every other currency is treated as foreign — including the local Riel if your books are in USD. Translation differences flow through P&L or other comprehensive income depending on the nature of the item.
Practical tips
Reconcile cash drawers daily in both currencies. Set a clear policy for which rate applies — MEF average is the most defensible. And configure your accounting system to handle multi-currency natively rather than converting outside the ledger.
How to Verify the MEF Rate for Your Filing
Whether you are posting a USD invoice, computing month-end FX revaluation, or preparing a customs declaration, the rule is the same: anchor your figure to the official MEF daily bulletin for the relevant valuation date. Use today's official MEF rate from the Cambodia Exchange dashboard for live work, or pick any past date to retrieve the exact rate that applied on that day. Archive the rate evidence (a screenshot or API response) alongside the supporting document — GDT auditors increasingly request the source for every FX translation.
For the full data-handling disclosure — including caching, timezone normalization to Indochina Time, and how weekend/holiday fallbacks work — see our data methodology. For binding tax or customs positions, cross-check against the MEF bulletin directly and consult a licensed Cambodian tax advisor.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Should my Cambodian business use USD or KHR as its functional currency?
- Pick the currency that best reflects the primary economic environment you operate in. Many SMEs in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap default to USD because pricing, salaries and major contracts are dollar-denominated; businesses dealing mostly with the Cambodian government or rural retail often pick KHR. The decision should be documented and applied consistently.
- Can I keep two sets of books, one in USD and one in KHR?
- No. Each legal entity has one functional currency and one set of books. You can present financial statements in a different presentation currency (for example KHR for filing, USD for management) but the underlying ledger remains single-currency.
- How do I handle cash drawers that take both Riel and Dollars?
- Count and record each currency separately in its original denomination, then translate to the functional currency at the MEF rate for the day. Mixing currencies during the count introduces rounding errors that are hard to trace later.
Cambodia Exchange sends the official daily KHR rate and monthly GDT reminders to your phone — free, no registration.
Join the channel →Founder & Editor · Cambodia Exchange · Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Tha Bunthai is the founder of Cambodia Exchange, built to give Cambodia's finance and accounting teams a fast, reliable reference for official MEF daily exchange rates. With a background in IT systems and digital integration, he writes about FX compliance, accounting standards, and tax rules for teams operating in Cambodia.
អត្ថបទនេះមានប្រយោជន៍មែនទេ? ចែករំលែកជាមួយក្រុមរបស់អ្នក ឬ ផ្ញើមតិមកយើង។