Banking sector – An effective monetary tool for Gov’t

VNGOP – Standing Deputy PM compared the banking and financial system as the “nervous system” governing the country’s economic activities and asked it to operate more effectively, especially in providing clear-sighted strategies and assisting the Government to deal with difficulties and maintain growth rate.

April 02, 2008 7:07 AM GMT+7

Deputy PM Nguyễn Sinh Hùng confers the Hồ Chí Minh Medal to Vietcombank - Photo: VNGOP

At the 45^th anniversary of the Bank for Foreign Trade of Việt Nam (Vietcombank-VCB), one of the leading State-owned banks in Việt Nam, held on April 1, Deputy PM Hùng valued the banking sector as an effective monetary tool for the Government to manage the national economy.

About seven State-owned banks, 48 joint-stock trade ones, over 900 cooperative ones, five joint-ventures, 24 branches of foreign banks and a large number of financial companies and credit organizations compose a broad network which has facilitated the monetary circulation among enterprises, contributing to the economic development.

Deputy PM Hùng urged VCB and the whole sector to improve their management tools, ensure the safety of the credit system, increase their competitiveness, draft the roadmap of equitization, select strategic shareholders, enlarge financial scale, and acquire international standards. He also suggested VCB to continue its leading position and become a powerful bank.

Chairman of VCB's Board of Directors Nguyễn Hòa Bình revealed that VCB is planning to build a multi-functional financial group. By late 2007, VCB opened nearly 200 branches and transactional offices nationwide, established relations with over 1,000 banks in the world. It earned the total assets of nearly VND 196 trillion and the total pre-tax income of over VND 3 trillion. VCB targets to become a multi-functional financial group in ASEAN and one of 70 top banks in Asia by 2015.

By Thanh Thúy