After being relatively stable last year, the foreign exchange rate of the Vietnamese dong against the US dollar is forecast to be under greater pressure in 2020 due to both internal and external headwinds.
Though Tet (Lunar New Year) is approaching with rising capital demands, the liquidity of the banking system is abundant, helping interest rates in the inter-bank market drop sharply, industry insiders said.
The increasing inflow of remittances ahead of the Lunar New Year has replenished the liquidity of the banking system, thus resulting in a steep fall in the interbank interest rates in January, according to insiders.
The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has been invited to become a member of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the first expansion of the prestigious international financial institution's central bank membership base since 2011.
The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) said it will continue coordinating with concerned Vietnamese ministries and agencies to communicate with the US regarding the US Department of Treasury’s latest report on macroeconomic and foreign exchange policies of major trading partners of the US.
The Government supports the policy of allowing four State-owned banks to raise charter capital, said Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) Le Minh Hung.
The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has issued a document requesting credit organisations and branches of foreign banks to expand credit activities serving production, business and consumption as part of efforts to limit “black credit”.
A report by securities firm SSI on the financial and monetary market says deposit interest rates are likely to be cut by 0.5- 1 percentage point this year, and lending interest rates would also be cut by at least 0.5 percentage points as required by the Government.
The competition to gain a larger share in the consumer finance market is heating up as rising capital demand before Tet (Lunar New Year) is an opportunity for both banks and finance companies.
The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) aims to again curb the inflation below 4 percent and sustain the monetary market this year, SBV Governor Le Minh Hung told a teleconference of the banking sector in Hanoi on January 2.
Many Vietnamese commercial banks have moved to develop retail banking services, seeing it as a strategy to reduce risks and optimise their business results, according to insiders.
Credit grew over 13 percent in 2019, slightly below the yearly targetof 14 percent, a senior official from the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) told a recent press conference.
Vietnam’s foreign exchange reserves have reached approximately 79 billion USD so far this year, with a quarter of it bought by the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), according to SBV Governor Lai Minh Hung.
Capital difficulties are putting pressure on some banks struggling to meet the central bank’s Basel II deadline of early next year, but experts suggest the central bank should not delay the process.
Vietnam International Bank (VIB) has become the first bank in Vietnam to complete the three pillars of Basel II, which are minimum capital, supervisory review and market discipline.
Daegu Bank of the Republic of Korea (RoK) is preparing to open a branch in Ho Chi Minh City after getting the green light from the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV).
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