Interbank interest rates rise to 12%.

Overnight interbank lending rates surged to 12% on March 30, with the State Bank of Vietnam injecting a net 30 trillion VND to support liquidity.

According to data from the Vietnam Interbank Market Research Association (Vira), interbank interest rates on March 30th – the interest rates for borrowing between banks – increased sharply across most short-term maturities.

Specifically, the overnight lending rate – the key borrowing term – increased sharply from 4.5% last week to 12%; the one-week rate rose to 11.6%; and the two-week and one-month rates reached 7.45% and 7.75% respectively. The increase in interbank interest rates indicates that system liquidity is showing signs of strain and could put pressure on deposit and lending rates in the retail market.

In this context, the State Bank of Vietnam is injecting money through open market operations (OMO) to support system liquidity.

The Open Market Operations (OMO) collateralized lending channel is a monetary policy tool where the State Bank of Vietnam buys and sells securities (bonds, treasury bills) with commercial banks to regulate liquidity and short-term interest rates. This is a way for the State Bank of Vietnam to "inject" money into the market or "withdraw" money to support liquidity.

During the day, over 58.9 trillion VND matured on this channel, and the State Bank of Vietnam did not issue treasury bills. Thus, the central bank injected a net 31 trillion VND into the market. The total outstanding volume on the collateralized lending channel reached 275.7 trillion VND.

Transactions at a commercial bank. Photo: Giang Huy

Vietcombank Securities (VCBS) notes that liquidity and capital balance pressures on the banking system have increased since the second half of 2025, narrowing the liquidity buffer at some banks, especially small and medium-sized joint-stock commercial banks. This reduces their ability to absorb short-term shocks and increases their dependence on high-cost interbank funding.

According to Vietcombank Securities Company (VCBS), liquidity pressure may persist before and after the Lunar New Year due to delays in the reallocation of funds within the system. Interbank interest rates are therefore forecast to remain high in March before gradually cooling down, with support from the State Bank of Vietnam's regulatory tools.

However, escalating geopolitical tensions, according to VCBS, could also narrow the State Bank of Vietnam's operational room. In a less favorable scenario, to ensure exchange rate stability and control inflation, interest rates could be adjusted upwards across commercial banks, both in speed and scale.

In fact, deposit interest rates at both state-owned and private banks have also increased sharply by 1-2%, with many institutions pushing rates up to 8-9% without requiring billion-dollar deposits or VIP customers.

According to vnexpress.net

Source: https://baophutho.vn/lai-suat-lien-ngan-hang-len-12-250900.htm