Illuminating hidden harvests the contribution of small scale fisheries to sustainable development

Great minds from around the world have a wealth of knowledge and want Vietnam to be a digital pioneer, Photo: Cuong Minh At VIR’s forum on digital transformation on March 21, Do Tien Thinh, deputy director of the Vietnam National Innovation Centre (NIC), said that it is crucial to support innovation and help businesses achieve their emission reduction goals. “While technology groups seek to expand their customer base and provide tech solutions, local businesses require digital transformation and innovation,” Thinh said. “In response, the NIC acts as a mediator, connecting private sector businesses with technology solution providers to provide training for human resources in digital transformation and innovation.” The NIC has already collaborated with the likes of Siemens, Google, and Hitachi to implement innovation support programmes at factories. A very visible area of green digital transformation has been in manufacturing, with factories constantly seeking new approaches … [Read more...] about Greener, faster, smarter digital plans

At the signing ceremony between VPBank and SMBC (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – 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. 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 … [Read more...] about VPBank sells 15% stake to Japan’s SMBC for 1.5 bln USD

To improve project readiness and provide opportunities to attract investment from Vietnamese and international investors, the schemes will receive tailored one-to-one and group support. This will include advice on technical aspects, financial models, materials, and advice on enhancing gender equality and social inclusion. The CFA is part of the UK government’s efforts to help Vietnam meet the commitments made by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh at COP26 in Glasgow two years ago, and offer support to implement the Vietnam Just Energy Transition Partnership (V-JETP) that was agreed upon in December last year. “The exciting and innovative projects selected to be part of CFA Vietnam underline the significant potential of the Vietnamese private sector to help tackle the climate crisis," British Ambassador to Vietnam, Iain Frew, said. "The expertise shared with these projects will help move them closer to finding investment, leading to reductions in carbon emissions for communities across … [Read more...] about Innovative low-carbon projects join UK’s climate finance scheme

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

The investment from SMBC will help the bank raise almost VND36 trillion, or approximately $1.52 billion, of Tier 1 capital, increasing its owner equity from $4.5 billion to approximately $6.1 billion This comes as part of capital raising plans that VPBank has been implementing over the last year to strengthen its long-term finances and support its ambitious growth strategy over the next five years. Ngo Chi Dung, chairman of the Board of Directors of VPBank (right) and Masahiro Yoshimura, CEO, Chief Investment Officer, SMBC Bank Following this latest investment from SMBC, VPBank now becomes Vietnam’s second-largest bank in terms of owner equity, which allows it to serve a wide range of customer needs in various segments, including retail banking, corporate banking and small- and medium-sized enterprises. The robust capital stance will also help VPBank to serve large-scale enterprises, particularly multinational companies and foreign firms that are already … [Read more...] about VPBank announces SMBC as foreign strategic investor

The CFA is part of the UK Government's efforts to help Vietnam meet the commitments made by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh at COP26 in Glasgow in 2021. Nine low carbon projects from across Vietnam have been announced to be part of the first cohort of the Climate Finance Accelerator (CFA) Vietnam. The selected projects come from diverse sectors including renewable energy, resource and energy efficiency, electromobility, AFOLUs (agriculture, forestry and other land uses), decarbonised construction, circular economy and waste management, and have the potential to benefit communities across Vietnam. Deep C Green is one of the first nine low-carbon projects in Vietnam to join the CFA. Photo: Deepc.vn Projects will receive tailored one-on-one and group support to improve project readiness and chances of attracting investment from Vietnamese and international investors. This will include advice on technical aspects, financial models, and pitch materials, as well as … [Read more...] about UK-funded CFA to support nine low-carbon projects in Vietnam