Meeting customer needs bolsters Vietcombank

Would you give us a glimpse of Vietcombank’s credit picture in the year to date?

So far this year, our bank has been striving to find new customers, simultaneously meeting burgeoning loan demands for production-business expansion from existing customers.

The bank has been proactively deploying solutions to boost credit growth along with controlling credit quality, focusing credit on production and priority areas attuned to the government’s commitment.

Along with this, as of August 31, total outstanding balances in the whole Vietcombank system surged 1.04 per cent compared to early 2023, in which the balances in priority areas accounted for more than 35 per cent of the total.

By virtue of close credit quality control, the bank’s non-performing loan ratio was well-contained at below 1 per cent.

Regarding the Hanoi market, one of our two key operational areas of with 16 branch offices, the bank had succeeded in raising nearly $14.8 billion from businesses, organisations, and individuals, equal to 27 per cent of total raised volume, 22 per cent of total outstanding balances, and 16 per cent of total international settlement volume of the whole system.

By August 31, the Hanoi’s branch offices eyed 6.5 per cent growth in total outstanding balances compared to early this year, with the credit channelling into diverse fields of production and business.

Of this, around $6.67 billion was disbursed to corporate customers, making up one-quarter of total outstanding balances on corporate customers, showing a 12.1 per cent jump compared to the end of 2022. The figure for small- and medium-sized enterprise customers surged 11 per cent compared to early this year.

What measures have your bank taken to propel credit growth?

The bank has seamlessly deployed solutions to support customers and promote credit growth. Specifically, it has focused on implementing solutions to soften the interest rates for customers such as reducing lending rates for priority areas, expediting loan programmes for social and worker housing, renewing and rebuilding of old apartments, and loan programmes earmarked for the agro-forestry-fishery sector, among others.

Of note, in the year to date, our bank has expedited three policies on lending rate support with reduction reaching 0.5 per cent to push up economic rebound and development. The supported interest amount is expected to fetch $84.4 million for the whole year.

Moving forward, our bank has crafted a slew of working sessions with senior business executives abroad and in Vietnam to upscale the transaction volume of foreign investment customers; organised seminars with diverse domestic and foreign business associations; executed networking programmes between banks and businesses; and made efforts with relevant management agencies to swiftly troubleshoot issues businesses were facing.

By synchronous implementation of these measures, we expect to secure significant growth in the credit scale by the end of 2023, especially for the corporate customer segment in production and business activities.

How has the bank resolved the difficulties in terms of policy mechanisms?

We have issued internal regulations and increased communication and management guidance throughout the system to implement Circular 02 from April on debt rescheduling and retention of debt categories to assist borrowers facing difficulties.

The same approach has also taken place towards Circular No.06 and amendments, and is added with specific regulations on lending activities by electronic means.

Simultaneously, our members have regularly surveyed and gathered opinions from branch offices, organised conferences, and worked with customers to capture information about the problems arise in the process of granting credit to customers.

The banking system is deemed to be at the forefront of the economy’s digital transformation process, yet customers still face complicated procedures during transactions that hinder credit growth. What is your take on this?

Banks promote technology application in the provision of products and services to customers, proactively reviewing credit processes with the orientation of simplifying and shortening lending procedures, promoting customer access to promote credit growth.

Our bank has actively deployed digital banking initiatives with many breakthroughs in banking products and services, increasing utilities to meet customer needs and creating the most improvements for customers in banking transactions to reduce time and operating costs for all parties. Last but not least, our bank focuses on developing and improving technology solutions to supersede current manual operations while also striving to apply digital signatures in credit appraisal gearing towards digitalising all tasks in the credit process and shortening operational times.

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