Sathapana Bank, Manulife Cambodia, Station and Voltra jointly launched the "Green Mobility Event" on August 9 to promote sustainable living and celebrate "World EV Day".
Jean Pierre Gagnon, deputy CEO of Sathapana Bank, Yann Vaudin, CEO of Voltra, and Akihiro Kato, president of Cambodian Premier League football club Angkor Tiger, rode to Siem Reap on electric motorbikes to highlight the importance of sustainable mobility.
The 335km joyride on Cambodian-made, 100 per cent electric Voltra Matrix bikes aimed, by showcasing their reliability, to encourage Cambodian people in taking steps to reduce pollution by using electric vehicles.
“As a leading commercial bank in Cambodia, sustainability and ESG [environmental, social, and corporate governance] principles are important to us. We believe that supporting green mobility and e-motorbikes will tremendously benefit Cambodian people.
"This event highlights and promotes the use of e-bikes, which are just as good as petrol bikes,” said Sathapana Bank's Gagnon.
The convoy departed from the capital's Sathapana Tower on August 8, passing iconic landmarks such as Independence Monument and Wat Phnom before heading towards National Road 6 and on to Siem Reap.
With motorcycles an essential vehicle for everyday life In Cambodia, the Green Mobility campaign is a significant awareness-raising activity regarding the economic and environmental benefits of electric motorcycles.
“We are launching this event to promote the use of electric motorcycles in the Kingdom to reduce transport-related pollution and prove to Cambodian citizens that electric vehicles are reliable and efficient, even over long distances.
"The use of an electric motorcycle is currently 10 times cheaper than a petrol motorcycle,” said Voltra's Vaudin.
Justin D Helferich, the CEO and general manager of Manulife Cambodia, said: “As the country’s first international life insurance company with 10-year-milestone, as well as a longstanding member of the business community, Manulife Cambodia is honoured to provide support for the green mobility initiative in Cambodia through this event.
"This is also one of many ways in which we are focusing on accelerating a sustainable future for the community as part of our Impact Agenda.”
Frederic Proulx, the CEO of Station, said: “At Station, we take great pride at creating a green driven ecosystem where we bring the latest technologies to Cambodia, bringing our partners and various communities closer. It was then obvious that we would be part of this amazing initiative."
World EV Day is observed every September 9, with special awareness campaigns aimed at educating people on the benefits of electric vehicles – EVs – organised globally on the day to mark the celebration of e-mobility.
To support World EV Day, Sathapana and Manulife will launch a series of activities, culminating with the announcement of the two winners of e-bikes on September 9.
About Sathapana Bank
Sathapana Bank is a leading commercial bank in Cambodia, with total assets of over US$2.4 billion and more than 4,000 employees. It boasts an extensive branch network nationwide, with more than 170 branches, three Sathapana Premier Banking halls and over 250 ATMs.
The financial institution provides complete banking services such as loans, deposits, iBanking, Mobile Banking, debit and credit cards, domestic and foreign remittances, cross-border fund transfers with SWIFT and Visa B2B Connect, Western Union, trade finance and other financial services.
Sathapana Bank also offers tax collection services and public service payments with the Ministry of Public Works and Transportation, and the Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training.
It works with mobile payment providers such as Wing, Pi Pay, TrueMoney, Ly Hour Veluy, eMoney and Bakong to further customer convenience.
Recently, Sathapana Bank won the prestigious “Best Mobile Banking App Award 2022” and “Mobile Banking and Payment Initiative of the Year” award from the UK-based Global Brands Magazine and Asian Banking and Finance Retail Banking Awards for its newly revamped mobile banking app, Sathapana Mobile.
The two awards are testament to Sathapana Bank's continuous efforts and commitment to serve customers better as the need for mobile banking services continues to grow and digital experiences like Sathapana Mobile become part of the Cambodian lifestyle.
About Voltra
Since 2015, research and development has been carried out to create Voltra, the first Cambodian brand specialising in two-wheel electric vehicles with high quality materials at an affordable price.
Protected as a trademark since 2017, today Voltra is the market leader for premium electric motorcycles in Cambodia. With 10 years of expertise in electric vehicles, the company sells products that comply with European standards to ensure its customers ride in complete safety.
Voltra's has a 450sqm head office/showroom in central Phnom Penh and a showroom/workshop in Siem Reap, with two more branches opening in Kampot and Battambang this year.
Beyond developing its business model, Voltra is creating a new pool of skilled Cambodians, providing quality one-to-one training for all employees, upskilling them in everything from marketing and sales to electrical engineering.
It also works with NGOs to deliver vocational training courses on electro-mechanics, providing valuable skills to the next generation.
The Matrix model used for the “Green Mobility Event” is among the very best EVs available on the Southeast Asian market, having proven to be a robust, long range and technologically advanced electric motorcycle.
This is evidenced by the long list of companies and institutions that have trusted Voltra to equip their staff with its models, such as the UNDP, the French embassy, the Swiss consulate, AFD, DHL Express, Smart Axiata and Bolloré Logistics.
About Manulife
Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider helping people make their decisions easier and lives better.
With global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, it provides financial advice and insurance, operating as Manulife across Canada, Asia and Europe, and primarily as John Hancock in the US.
Through Manulife Investment Management, the global brand for its global wealth and asset management segment, it serves individuals, institutions and retirement plan members worldwide.
At the end of 2021, Manulife had more than 38,000 employees, over 119,000 agents and thousands of distribution partners, serving more than 33 million customers.
Manulife's principal operations are in Asia and Canada, and the US, where it has served customers for more than 160 years. It trades as "MFC" on the Toronto, New York and Philippine stock exchanges, and under "945" in Hong Kong.
In the previous 12 months, Manulife made CAD$32.7 billion in payments to customers.
