Government plans pilot application of new payment services

 

Hanoi (VNA) - Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue has asked relevant bodies to report a pilot plan on applying new payment services to Prime Minister before April this year.

Accordingly, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), in conjunction with other relevant bodies, must scrutinise and build up legal frameworks for the management and pilot application of the services.

The new payment services will mainly relate to public services, such as tax, electricity, water, tuition, hospital fees and social and public welfare programmes.

Earlier, the Prime Minister had approved a project on fostering the payment of public services via banking.

Under the project, the Government targets to collect 80 percent of tax payments in cities and provinces via banks by 2020, while all State treasuries will have cashless payment devices.

The scheme also targets non-cash payments to be accepted by 70 percent of power companies, 70 percent of water companies, 100 percent of universities and colleges and 50 percent of hospitals in major cities. Some 20 percent of social welfare payments will also be made via banks.

[Vietnam intensifies non-cash payments for public services]

According to the SBV’s Payment Department, cashless payment is becoming a trend in Vietnam. Cash payment has decreased from 14 percent in 2010 to 12 percent at present, the department said.

It reported that 96.2 million cards have been issued nationwide, up 210 percent from early 2011.

There are some 60 organisations providing internet banking payment services and 30 organisations providing mobile banking payment services.

The payment infrastructure has also been improved, as evident in the rapid increase of ATMs and points-of-sale machines, up 47 percent and 300 percent, respectively.-VNA