Banking & Finance

The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) will expand credit growth limits on banks in the fourth quarter, based on capital and risk management capacity.

With low interest rates on corporate bonds, banks have taken advantage of restructuring old debts and issuing new bonds as well as increasing bond purchases ahead of time to meet the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV)’s capital ratio regulations.

MB Bank and international payment provider UnionPay will issue the first UnionPay international non-physical debit card in Vietnam, allowing users to pay for goods and services via QR Codes or non-contact payments.

Banks have cut interest rates in recent times as part of supporting businesses and individuals to overcome the effects of Covid-19 on their financial position. In addition to restructuring repayment terms on VND550 trillion ($22.27 billion) worth of loans, banks have also exempted or lowered interest rates totaling VND31.4 trillion ($1.4 billion).

Unlisted real estate companies have alarmingly low or very weak debt repayment capacity, while 28 out of 52 listed companies have been initially ranked as being weak or very weak in debt repayment capacity, according to recent market research from FiinGroup.

Crimes using high technology have been increasing in recent times. A representative from the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) said it will raise awareness about policies and laws so that people can avoid being taken advantage of. The SBV Governor has affirmed that there are many regulations in place relating to opening and using bank accounts to make payment transactions and transfer money abroad, such as the Law on Preventing and Combating Money Laundering money and the Criminal Code.