Business News

According to the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), banks are actively offering new soft loan packages to customers. The combined value of this credit package has to date reached VND650 trillion (US$28 billion) with lending rates 1-2% lower than those before the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak. 147,637 customers have borrowed VND553 trillion (US$23.6) since January 23, 2020.

The forthcoming tax amendment on interest expense cap is slated to be beneficial for 1,000 companies adopting parent-subsidiary business models, with reimbursement worth nearly VND5 trillion ($217.4 million).

The SBV said credit demand from firms involved in industry, construction and agriculture had increased by 1 per cent and 0.3 per cent, respectively, while the figures had declined for trade, services, tourism and consumption. Credit demand from small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) also decreased by more than 1 per cent.

Many banks in Vietnam have reduced their profit target for 2020, and plan to support companies severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The State Bank of Việt Nam on Tuesday issued a directive to reduce the fees for transactions via interbank electronic payment system by 50 per cent for local banks.

The Ministry of Finance on Monday issued a decision regulating the roadmap for the application of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), replacing the current Vietnamese accounting standards (VAS).

In the draft decree extending the deadline for tax and land rent payment, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) assessed that most industries and sectors, especially micro- and small-sized enterprises, individuals, groups of individuals, production households, and businesses are affected by the COVID-19.

Vietnamese lenders and fintech groups are catching up with international peers on kick-starting the economy and promoting cashless transactions in the face of the coronavirus outbreak, but greater advancement always comes with new risks.