Many Australian firms have tapped into the Vietnamese market due to Vietnam’s strengthened political security, apart from an efficient anti-corruption crackdown, heard a seminar on Vietnam-Australia education, culture, and cuisine promotion in Hanoi on Monday. The Australian side strongly believes that Vietnam will further improve transparency and the investment climate. The event, jointly organized by the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade), Hanoi authorities, and many enterprises, acted as a start for a series of similar seminars to be held in five cities and provinces this year, which marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Vietnam and Australia. An Austrade representative delivers a presentation on the performance of the Vietnam-Australia partnership in 2022. Photo: Duy Linh / Tuoi Tre Australia picks Vietnam as an investment destination thanks to political security Eliza Chui, a representative of Austrade, said that many … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s political security makes the country more attractive to Australian investors
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Seminar seeks experts’ advice for Vietnam’s green transition
The event was co-organized by the EfD (Environment for Development)-Vietnam, the Economy and Environment Partnership for Southeast Asia (EEPSEA), and the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH). Dr. Nguyen Quang from the UEH said, heavily affected by climate change, Vietnam has become one of the pioneering countries in Southeast Asia in green transition. He noted that Vietnam has come up with many outstanding financial policies concerning taxes, fees and economic tools to help enterprises develop green production, with many local firms switching from traditional business models to smarter and more sustainable, environmentally friendly ones. Dr. Nguyen The Chinh from the EEPSEA pointed a number of existing barriers that make it difficult for companies to implement their green transition, notably a lack of specific and legalized regulations on criteria to identify green businesses, green production processes, and green materials, among others. The expert suggested a need … [Read more...] about Seminar seeks experts’ advice for Vietnam’s green transition
Kredivo closes $270m Series D equity round
This round was led by Japanese global bank Mizuho Bank, Ltd., a subsidiary of Mizuho Financial Group, Inc. and drew significant interest from Kredivo Holdings’ existing stable of top tier investors, including Square Peg Capital, Jungle Ventures, Naver Financial Corporation, GMO Venture Partners, and Openspace Ventures. This funding round will cement Kredivo’s leading position in the digital financial services industry through its powerful expanding ecosystem which includes online and offline Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL), personal loans, credit cards (physical and virtual) and support the upcoming launch of the neobank Krom. Kredivo is already a market leader in the third party BNPL segment in Indonesia, covering all major ecommerce and offline channels in the country via its open loop network. Akshay Garg, CEO of Kredivo Holdings said, “Despite challenging market conditions, investors continue to recognise the scale and strength of our business, and our innovation potential. … [Read more...] about Kredivo closes $270m Series D equity round
Visa upgrade at heart of fresh approach to tourism
Visas, service quality, and technology were all part of discussions on a better-performing tourism sector Photo: Cuong Minh May’s National Assembly session is likely to help push ahead a revamp of the country’s rules on entry and exit for foreign visitors, after the Ministry of Public Security crafts amendments to the current law. The development will be an important basis for the issuance of new regulations related to the visa policy, removing difficulties for the tourism industry, and creating conditions to attract more international visitors this year, according to most observers. Dang Tuan Viet, deputy director of the Ministry of Public Secrutity’s (MoPS) Vietnam Immigration Department, said that the proposal emphasised two major areas related to unilateral visa exemption and electronic visa policy. The MoPS also proposes to expand the number of countries that can issue e-visas from 80 countries to the maximum. The MoPS will also ask to increase the temporary stay … [Read more...] about Visa upgrade at heart of fresh approach to tourism
A laborer needs to save for 25 years to buy an apartment
It is now nearly impossible to buy a new apartment at the VND 2 billion mark. According to a report in 2022 from Rever, a Southeast Asia technology firm in real estate brokerage, for VND1.5-1.8 billion, one can buy a 30-55 square meter apartment built 6-10 years ago in Thu Duc City, on the secondary market. The average income of workers in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) this year is about VND148 million a year, according to property listing platform Batdongsan.com.vn. By that calculation, it will take up to 24 years to save, with no spending on anything, just to buy an apartment. The type of apartment used in this survey costs VND3.5 billion per unit. The data also shows that Vietnam ranks first in Southeast Asia in terms of the gap between house prices and average worker incomes. From 2018 to 2021, the ratio of the difference between real estate prices and the average income of Vietnamese has continuously increased, surpassing even Singapore. On the other hand, Indonesia, Malaysia and … [Read more...] about A laborer needs to save for 25 years to buy an apartment
50th anniversary of Vietnam-Italy diplomatic ties celebrated in Ho Chi Minh City
In his remarks, Chairman of the People’s Committee Phan Van Mai highlighted the increasingly close ties between the two countries, saying over the past 50 years, the bilateral relationship has grown actively across spheres, both bilaterally and multilaterally. The good traditional friendship has also been consolidated and enhanced, the official added. Notably, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Vietnam presented Italy with more than 300,000 masks, while Italy donated 2.8 million doses of vaccines to the Southeast Asian nation. This vividly demonstrates the intensive and effective strategic partnership and friendship between the two countries, he said. Ho Chi Minh City, for its part, has actively worked to promote cooperation with Italy, Mai noted, adding that the relations between Ho Chi Minh City and Italy have reaped achievements in trade, investment, education and training, culture, and tourism. According to the official, the two-way trade reached 591 million USD last year. For … [Read more...] about 50th anniversary of Vietnam-Italy diplomatic ties celebrated in Ho Chi Minh City
Vietnamese female entrepreneurs take the lead in boosting green growth
The event saw the participation of representatives from 31 women's associations from across the country. The seminar's aim was to promote sustainable growth and development within the female-led business community in Vietnam and share developments in sustainable practices and integrating environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG). The conference was part of a larger sustainable business development initiative, officially launched by VAWE in 2022, that focuses on reducing emissions and negative impacts on the environment and society, as well as integrating ESG into corporate values. In attendance was Ton Ngoc Hanh, vice chairwoman of the Vietnam Women's Union, who said, "This seminar encourages a spirit of responsibility in Vietnam's female business community, showing the commitment and determination of everyone here to join hands with the government in achieving the goal of green growth, and to contribute effectively to sustainable development in the country. " Nguyen … [Read more...] about Vietnamese female entrepreneurs take the lead in boosting green growth
VPBank sells 15% stake to Japan’s SMBC for 1.5 bln USD
Vietnamese lender VPBank on March 27 signed an agreement to sell its 15% stake to Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) through a private placement. At the signing ceremony between VPBank and SMBC (Photo: VNA) With this deal, SMBC, a subsidiary of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc (SMFG), has officially become a foreign strategic investor of the Vietnamese bank. The investment from SMBC will help VPBank raise 35.9 trillion VND (approximately 1.5 billion USD) of Tier 1 capital (equal to 30,160 VND per share), increasing its equity to approximately 140 trillion VND from 103.5 trillion VND. Following the investment, VPBank will become Vietnam’s second largest bank in terms of equity, which allows it to serve a wide range of customer needs in various segments, including retail banking, corporate banking and SMEs. The robust capital stance will also back VPBank in serving large-scale enterprises, particularly the FDI and multi-national companies … [Read more...] about VPBank sells 15% stake to Japan’s SMBC for 1.5 bln USD