National Assembly Chairman attends seminar on construction and operation of International Financial Center

This is a very practical event in the context of the Vietnamese National Assembly having just passed a Resolution on the construction of the Vietnam International Financial Center located in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang.

Attending the seminar were: Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Nguyen Duc Hai; Deputy Prime Minister Le Thanh Long; Secretary General of the National Assembly , Head of the National Assembly Office Le Quang Tung and members of the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation.

toadam a8.jpg — National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man attended the opening ceremony of the seminar "Building and operating the International Financial Center and recommendations for Vietnam"

On the Swiss side, there were: Head of the Macroeconomic Support Unit, Swiss Federal Directorate for Economic Affairs Jürg Vollenweider; Member of the Geneva State Parliament, Director General of the Swiss University of Applied Sciences UMEF; Head of the Financial Innovation Group, World Economic Forum Guillaume Hingel; Senior Management Board Member of the Swiss Bankers Association Gabiel Bourqui and many Swiss finance and banking experts.

The potential and advantages of Vietnam and Switzerland are still very large.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man highly appreciated the Ministry of Finance and other agencies for coordinating the organization of the seminar on Building and Operating an International Financial Center - Recommendations for Vietnam to promote cooperation between Vietnam and Switzerland; saying that this is a meaningful activity within the framework of the working trip of the Vietnamese high-ranking delegation to Switzerland.

toadam a2.jpg — National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man delivered the opening speech at the seminar.

The National Assembly Chairman said that the International Financial Center is a new model in Vietnam but has been operating for a long time in Switzerland, and Switzerland is the world's financial and banking center. He hoped that Swiss agencies and experts would share and make recommendations to Vietnam on the construction, management and operation of the Vietnam International Financial Center.

Introducing some of Vietnam's current socio-economic development achievements, the National Assembly Chairman stated that after nearly 40 years of Doi Moi, Vietnam's economy has ranked 34th in the world and is on the rise, recognized and highly appreciated by international organizations. In 2024, Vietnam's economic growth will reach 7.09%, 15/15 socio-economic targets will be achieved and exceeded, GDP scale will reach more than 470 billion USD, average income per capita will be about 4,700 USD.

Despite many difficulties, in recent years, Vietnam has always maintained macroeconomic stability, controlled inflation, and ensured social security. In particular, Vietnam has always paid attention to and cared for the lives of its people, in which, Vietnam's poverty reduction is considered a bright spot by the international community, currently only below 3%. Vietnam is urgently completing the goal of eliminating temporary and dilapidated houses nationwide by August 31.

toadam a5.jpg — National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man delivered the opening speech at the seminar.

Currently, Vietnam is promoting administrative reform, building a streamlined, strong, efficient, effective, close-to-the-people apparatus and serving the people better by rearranging the organization and apparatus of Party, National Assembly, and Government agencies, merging provincial and commune-level administrative units, ending district-level government activities to officially operate a two-level local government model since July 1.

2025 is also the year Vietnam will hold Party Congresses at all levels, towards the organization of the 14th National Party Congress, prepare for the election of deputies to the 16th National Assembly and People's Councils at all levels for the 2026-2031 term; complete the 2021-2025 socio-economic development plan and prepare for the 2026-2030 socio-economic development plan with the target of double-digit growth.

The National Assembly Chairman also said that at the 9th session, the Vietnamese National Assembly amended and supplemented a number of articles of the Constitution, promulgated new laws and amended relevant laws to carry out the revolution in organizational apparatus and socio-economic development, attract foreign investment, and create favorable conditions for investors.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man and delegates attended the opening ceremony of the seminar "Building and operating an international financial center and recommendations for Vietnam"

In particular, on June 27, the Vietnamese National Assembly passed Resolution No. 222/2025/QH15, regulating the establishment, operation, management, supervision and specific mechanisms and policies applicable to the International Financial Center in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang to attract capital and promote new growth drivers.

The National Assembly Chairman also stated that Vietnam and Switzerland have a long-standing traditional relationship. In recent years, political and diplomatic cooperation between the two countries has continued to be strengthened through high-level visits and bilateral dialogues.

Investment cooperation activities between the two countries are also growing. As of June 2025, Vietnam recorded 214 valid direct investment projects from Switzerland, with a total registered capital of about 2.03 billion USD, with the main investment sectors including: processing and manufacturing industry (accounting for the largest proportion), trade services, pharmaceuticals, banking and insurance, and food technology.

toadam a12.jpg — Delegates attending the seminar

Emphasizing that the potential and advantages of the two countries are still very large, the National Assembly Chairman suggested that the Vietnamese Embassy in Switzerland and the Vietnamese Permanent Mission to the United Nations, the World Trade Organization and other international organizations in Geneva will coordinate more closely with Swiss authorities and international organizations in Switzerland to review the implementation of cooperation documents signed between the two countries, promptly remove difficulties, and create favorable conditions for more and more Swiss investors to enter Vietnam and Vietnamese investors to enter Switzerland to invest in production and business, especially in the fields and industries in which each country has strengths and needs.

Vietnam has sufficient financial position to develop and build international financial centers.

At the seminar, leaders of ministries, branches and experts from both sides focused on exchanging and dialogue on: strategies and legal frameworks for developing international financial centers in Vietnam; factors supporting the establishment and operation of international financial centers; Switzerland's experience in taxes, policies and legal frameworks for developing financial centers; experience in Geneva - the cradle of private banking and the Global Trade Finance Center; updating the traditional Geneva private banking model; perspectives on development finance, digital banking, Fintech and inclusive finance; Fintech strategy for the International Financial Center...

toadam a7.jpg — Delegates attending the seminar

Swiss delegates and experts highly appreciated Vietnam's decision to build a Global Financial Center, saying that this is a strategic issue, closely linked to the trend of deep integration of the global financial system. Many opinions emphasized that Vietnam has enough financial position to develop and build international financial centers suitable for the era of artificial intelligence. At the same time, they said that with the legal framework on the International Financial Center approved by the National Assembly, Vietnam is on the right track to develop strongly; hoping that in the future, the two sides will continue to work closely together, especially in new financial trends.

Switzerland, with Geneva and Zurich, has built financial centers of international influence, thanks to its transparent institutional framework, diverse financial ecosystem, effective international capital connectivity and exemplary risk management culture. These are valuable experiences that Vietnam - a dynamically developing economy - can refer to and apply in the process of building its first international financial center.

toadam a6.jpg — National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man and delegates attending the discussion

The seminar, with the participation of many representatives of legislative bodies, government agencies, enterprises, major financial institutions of Vietnam and experts, representatives of associations, enterprises and international organizations in Switzerland, demonstrated the deep interest of the Vietnamese business community in general and enterprises in the financial sector in particular in the Swiss market; at the same time, contributing to promoting the formation and effective operation of an international financial center in Vietnam, thereby opening up opportunities for strategic cooperation with international partners, including Switzerland.

At the seminar, National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man, Vice Chairman Nguyen Duc Hai, Deputy Prime Minister Le Thanh Long and delegates witnessed the exchange of Memorandums of Understanding between the Ministry of Finance and the Switzerland-Vietnam Economic Forum; Memorandums of Understanding between the Ministry of Finance and the Swiss Fintech Association; Memorandums of Understanding between VDB and the Swiss Trade Data Company.