Mr. Nguyen Duc Lenh – Deputy Director of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) Ho Chi Minh City Branch evaluates the bank-business connection program as a specific solution and action of the banking sector to support businesses. In particular, linking the program with disbursing preferential credit packages by participating credit institutions (according to the annual plan) has proved effective and ensured practicality and efficiency in the connection and support of businesses.
In essence, the preferential credit package in terms of capital and interest rate is tied to the monetary and credit policy mechanism of the central SBV, so the preferential credit package plays an important role in achieving the goals and effectiveness of the bank-business connection program, ensuring that businesses have access to low-interest capital; convenient access to the Government’s support policy mechanism, SBV.
In that sense, the continued registration and disbursement of preferential credit packages through the bank-business connection program by credit institutions in Ho Chi Minh City that have actively registered to participate have reflected responsibility and positive differences, providing the basis for the successful implementation of the bank-business connection program for the year 2024. Specifically:
First, the scale of the preferential credit package of the 2024 program was registered by 17 bank brands, with a total amount of: 509,684 billion dong, the highest ever. Meanwhile, this credit package in 2023 was 453,070 billion dong (with 20 bank brands registered). Therefore, compared to 2023, the number of registered bank brands decreased by 3, but the scale of the package increased by 12.49%.
Second, the preferential credit package has proven effective in directly supporting businesses in terms of capital and interest rates. The criteria for registering for the preferential credit package to participate in the program include: Reducing interest rates for businesses; restructuring debts for businesses maintaining debt groups; lending to 5 priority sectors and industries; increasing credit limits for businesses; low-interest rate loans… In terms of meaningful support interest rates, short-term interest rates in Vietnamese dong are about 4% and medium to long-term interest rates are about 9% per year (these rates will be adjusted reasonably according to market fluctuations, but must ensure support principles). Therefore, disbursing this credit package will bring tangible benefits to businesses in the process of expanding and developing production and business operations, thereby promoting economic growth in line with the orientation of the Government, SBV, and the City People’s Committee.
Third, the State commercial banks (State-owned banks with over 50% charter capital) including Vietcombank, BIDV, and VietinBank continue to be the banks with the largest registration scale of the credit package, accounting for 80% of the package’s scale. This not only reflects the pioneering role in implementing the SBV’s policies of these participating credit institutions but also the active participation of this group of credit institutions is of great significance in ensuring the effective implementation of the credit package (in terms of interest rates, capital, disbursement), ensuring stability and high disbursement capacity even when interest rates fluctuate. This is a very positive and maintained factor for many years of the program, affirming the role and brand of the program and the effectiveness of the SBV’s monetary and credit policies.
However, through the registration of preferential credit packages participating in the bank-business connection program in 2024 in Ho Chi Minh City, it reflects the responsibility of implementing policies of other credit institutions in the area. In which, some joint-stock commercial banks such as ACB, Sacombank, Nam A Bank, OCB, BVBank actively participated in the program and for many years, alongside that, foreign financial institutions such as Standard Chartered, Sinhanbank participating in the package with a not insignificant scale, has created differences and responsibilities of credit institutions in the area in implementing policies and accompanying the businesses of the City, bringing positive effects to the action program to support businesses of the banking sector in the City.
With those meanings, the organization and implementation of the bank-business connection program in 2024 will ensure that the City’s banking industry carries out well the assigned local tasks of the SBV, as well as fulfills the theme of the City for the year.
To continue to promote the effectiveness, Mr. Lenh emphasized the need to further enhance the coordination effectiveness of district and district departments and business associations in organizing the implementation of the program; policy dialogue and communication; exchanging information and removing difficulties for businesses; especially the responsibility of businesses in borrowing and using capital effectively, to contribute to improving credit efficiency, thereby promoting economic growth and development in accordance with the set goals of the City.
