Where customers place their trust

Not only providing loans for “three rural areas” and high-tech agriculture, Agribank Binh Thuan Branch also provides loans for industrial and tourism development to help customers have enough financial resources for long-term, sustainable investment, and accelerate economic development with the province. To understand the issue clearly, Binh Thuan Newspaper reporter interviewed Mr. Nguyen Huu Cau - Director of Agribank Binh Thuan Branch...

Sir, 2023 is a difficult year for the banking industry, what about Agribank?

Mr. Nguyen Huu Cau: In 2023, production and business activities of domestic economic sectors will face many difficulties, especially for enterprises in the fields of real estate, construction, import-export, garment, fuel... The affected production, supply and consumption chains have impacted the business activities of the economy in general as well as the banking sector in particular.

In that situation, closely following the direction and guidance of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), Agribank has implemented a credit policy in the direction of focusing capital on production and business, reducing costs, reducing lending interest rates to support customers, prioritizing investment in credit growth for customers who are small and medium enterprises, lending to priority sectors... Along with that, implementing solutions to restructure debt repayment terms, exempt and reduce interest and fees, keeping debt groups unchanged according to the direction of the Government and the State Bank. Agribank Binh Thuan Branch accepts to cut profits, is willing to share difficulties, accompany people and businesses to support customers to overcome difficulties, stabilize production such as: reducing lending interest rates for attractive credit programs, proactively restructuring debt repayment terms... Accordingly, Agribank Binh Thuan has reduced mobilization interest rates 12 times, reduced lending interest rates 8 times. Up to now, lending interest rates at the branch have decreased sharply with a decrease of 2% to 4%/year compared to the beginning of the year.

In 2023, Agribank Binh Thuan Branch actively implemented solutions to support people and businesses to access capital in accordance with the spirit of Decree 31/ND-CP with a total capital support scale of up to 652 billion VND. Restructuring debt repayment terms and maintaining debt groups to support customers facing difficulties in production and business activities and customers facing difficulties in repaying loans for living and consumption needs with a total restructured principal balance of 2,590 billion VND, restructured interest of 103 billion VND. Exempting and reducing interest and fees to support customers to repay bad debts and risk-handled debts (XLRR) during the recovery period after the Covid-19 pandemic for 63 customers.

In order to not interrupt production and business due to lack of capital of enterprises and people, and at the same time, implementing the policies of the Government and the State Bank, Agribank Binh Thuan has synchronously deployed many preferential credit programs for individuals and enterprises such as the program for small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) customers; preferential credit program to finance import and export customers; preferential credit program for forestry and fishery sectors; consumer loan program for health sector employees; preferential consumer loan program for cadres, civil servants, public employees and workers receiving salaries from the state budget...

In addition, Agribank Binh Thuan always fulfills its corporate responsibility to the community. As of the end of December 2023, Agribank Binh Thuan has sponsored 1,348 million VND for social security activities such as: 76 million VND for medical activities; 422 million VND for educational activities; 453 million VND for building houses for poor households; 250 million VND for supporting the poor during Tet; 147 million VND for other activities.

In 2024, Agribank has many consumer loan packages to limit the situation of black credit that people are looking forward to. What is your opinion on this issue?

Mr. Nguyen Huu Cau : To limit the situation of black credit, Agribank has been implementing preferential credit programs for both individual and corporate customers, not only meeting the borrowing needs of customers, but also an effective solution to help limit the situation of black credit, hot loans, installment payments with high interest rates on the market... Right from the beginning of 2024, Agribank implemented preferential interest rate consumer loan programs for individual customers, continuing to prioritize the capital of 10,000 billion VND in the credit structure to lend to meet the consumption purposes of individuals and households. In the coming time, Agribank will proactively issue specific loan products, issue a variety of credit card products for individual customers to serve their living needs, especially online loan products, applying digital technology to enhance Agribank's competitiveness, creating favorable conditions for customers to access loans easily and quickly, ensuring safety and efficiency.

Orientation to promote credit growth in the personal consumption sector such as: Buying houses, land, building new/renovating, repairing houses, purchasing essential household items (TV, washing machine, refrigerator, air conditioner...); means of transport (car, motorbike) and other consumption purposes according to current regulations of Agribank.

In addition to promoting rural agricultural lending according to Decree 55 and Decree 116 of the Government, continue to actively implement credit programs to promptly meet urgent and legitimate borrowing needs in people's daily lives and solutions to contribute to limiting black credit, in order to increase people's access to credit capital, especially in remote areas.

Binh Thuan tourism has made a breakthrough in 2023, and is expected to maintain its development foundation to attract tourists in 2024. How does Agribank participate in the program to develop 3 economic pillars, in which tourism is identified as the "spearhead"?

Mr. Nguyen Huu Cau : As a locality with many distinct potentials, outstanding opportunities, competitive advantages... Binh Thuan's economy has had, is having and will have strong changes in economic restructuring - towards a green growth model, sustainable development according to 3 economic pillars: Industry - tourism - high-tech agriculture. In which, priority is given to developing marine tourism, renewable energy, high-tech industry, ecological agriculture, modern countryside and civilized farmers.

In that context, Agribank Binh Thuan participates in developing the province's tourism "spearhead" including: Regarding credit, Agribank Binh Thuan will lend to feasible and highly effective tourism investment projects that fully meet Agribank's lending regulations and rules and legal regulations. Regarding products and services, as part of a series of tourism stimulus activities in Binh Thuan province to attract tourists to visit, enjoy... As part of the card development project, developing a network of CDM automatic transaction machines as well as electronic banking transactions across the country, specifically: CDM Autobank machines, Agribank e-mobile banking services, internet banking services, contactless payments by waving, lightly touching the POS machine to pay, is a cashless payment trend that many people are using, in addition to swiping domestic cards, international cards and paying by QR code through mobile devices. This form is welcomed not only because of its style and convenience but also because of its high safety features such as: faster transaction information processing speed. The ability to store 13 times more information helps banks integrate many convenient applications for customers in the same card; Increase security during use, and minimize the risk of being attacked by cyber criminals (skimming), limit the creation of fake cards when not having to present the card to the seller, not revealing information printed on the card, not revealing PIN number...

Thank you!

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