Create a solid foundation to grow with the country

Not until now, when Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW

(Resolution 57) of the Politburo on breakthroughs in science, technology, innovation and national digital transformation was issued, the banking sector has just begun to promote innovation and digital transformation. Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam Nguyen Thi Hong said: “The Standing Committee and the Board of Directors of the State Bank of Vietnam are very aware that developing science, technology, innovation and digital transformation are the fundamental and core points to promote high economic growth. Therefore, the State Bank of Vietnam has implemented many solutions and is one of the ministries and sectors that the Government has evaluated and recognized for its results in implementing digital transformation and promoting innovation”.

In particular, Decision No. 1364/QD-NHNN issued on March 5, 2025 implementing Resolution 57 is not only an administrative order, but also a call to arms, arousing the aspirations of each officer and employee of the banking sector, contributing to the development of a rich and powerful country in the new era - the era of national growth.

When innovation becomes ingrained in thinking

Going to the mountainous district of Nam Nhun, Lai Chau province, meeting Ms. Lu Thi Dung - Head of Accounting Department of the Transaction Office of the Bank for Social Policies in Nam Nhun district, we further understood that innovation and creativity have no geographical boundaries. Joining the industry since 2008 and currently working in a poor mountainous border district, Ms. Dung has encountered many difficulties when her house is far away, the operating area is very difficult, and the level of education of the people in the area is still low. However, all of these cannot stop the bank officer with the passion of "understanding the people's hearts, serving wholeheartedly", but rather urges her to constantly innovate, participate and implement initiatives and solutions to apply in implementing tasks. It can be mentioned here that the co-initiative "Solutions to improve the quality of inspection and supervision work before, during and after lending for social housing loans at the Transaction Office of the Bank for Social Policies of Nam Nhun district" has contributed to preventing errors in determining the loan level exceeding the loan demand, determining the percentage of completed volume exceeding the percentage of purchased materials/total volume.

estimated volume, reducing loan implementation time and improving loan quality and efficiency. Or the "Solution to improve the quality of authorization activities of Savings and Loan Groups at the Transaction Office of the Bank for Social Policies of Nam Nhun District" in which she participated has promoted the stable performance of Savings and Loan Groups by scoring and evaluating the quality of authorization activities. It is worth mentioning that in the past 5 years, every year she has contributed at least one initiative to the unit.

Another story. As Deputy Director of the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam - Thang Long Branch. Her initiative "Affiliate - Affiliate Marketing in 2022" has helped banks in Vietnam easily increase the number of users by sharing marketing links for banking products and services on social networks such as Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok... The program's partners will become an intermediary to advertise the bank's products, introducing them to potential users. This initiative helps expand sales scale, contributing to promoting service sales growth for retail customers.

There have been many such examples in the past. In the Program "1 million initiatives - efforts to overcome difficulties, creativity, determination to defeat the Covid-19 pandemic" launched by the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor in 2021, the Banking industry alone had 17,478 initiatives of officers and employees registered, reaching 106% of the assigned plan target. The initiatives participating in the Program have brought practical results to agencies and units, recognized by competent authorities and applied to bring great economic efficiency, contributing to the excellent completion of production and business results of units with an amount of thousands of billions of VND. Deputy Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam Dao Minh Tu acknowledged: “The initiatives have demonstrated the creativity and intelligence of banking workers, promptly adapting to living and working conditions in the context of the complicated pandemic and in the new normal period, contributing significantly to stabilizing and restoring production and business activities of enterprises and implementing political tasks of agencies and units”. At the same time, implementing the important policy of the Politburo, the Secretariat, the Government and the Prime Minister on epidemic prevention and control in the spirit of “Safely adapting, flexibly and effectively controlling the Covid-19 pandemic, gradually bringing the whole country to a new normal state; restoring and developing the socio-economy”.

This is just a highlight in the picture of the development of science, technology, and innovation of the banking industry in the long journey of development. Especially since the country entered the Doi Moi period, the banking industry has pioneered the implementation of science, technology, and innovation development with specific criteria and quantifications, set out in the Industry Development Strategies, administrative reform plans, digital transformation plans, and green transformation plans. Every year, these orientations are specified and flexibly adjusted according to the development progress of the economy, the banking industry, and the directions and orientations of the Party and the State.

In the journey of modernization and application of science and technology, the banking industry has also become a driving force to support ministries, branches and the economy in modernization, digital transformation, improving national competitiveness and international economic integration.

Putting people and businesses at the center

And in all those plans, the story of science, technology, innovation and digital transformation development is always called upon by the Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam to participate in and clearly state the consistent viewpoint of taking people and businesses as the center, taking customer experience as the measure. As a result, the State Bank of Vietnam regularly ranks high among ministries and branches in the index of creating digital transformation institutions. The credit institutions are constantly growing with many banks appearing in the rankings and honors of domestic and international organizations from scale, brand to modern products and services for the community, businesses and sustainable development.

Especially in the journey of modernization and application of science and technology, the banking sector has also become a driving force to support ministries, sectors and the economy in modernization, digital transformation, enhancing national competitiveness and international economic integration. Behind the results and progress in e-customs, e-tax, comprehensive public services and cashless payments is the unceasing support of the banking sector. With the spirit of connection to serve socio-economic development, the State Bank has directed credit institutions and payment intermediaries to implement the Implementation Plan of Project 06 of the banking sector and the Coordination Plan between the Ministry of Public Security and the State Bank.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, banking services and credit activities have adapted quickly and effectively to the trend of contactless payments, ensuring uninterrupted 24/7 banking operations, meeting the needs of businesses and people. This is also the fulcrum for the State Bank to implement Resolution No. 18-NQ/TW.

(October 25, 2017) on “Some issues of continuing to innovate and reorganize the apparatus of the political system to be streamlined and operate effectively and efficiently”. Although there are many payment connection systems and 63 provincial branches of the State Bank of Vietnam had to be restructured into 15 regions in less than 3 months, from the first day of conversion, the entire system's operations remained smooth and did not affect transactions of businesses and people.

The effectiveness and efficiency of the SBV's operations have therefore been increasingly improved and are vividly reflected in the fact that the SBV has been at the top of the administrative reform index assessment system of ministries and branches for 7 years (Par index). In 2024, although ministries and branches were not ranked, the results showed that the SBV's Par Index was the highest ever, reaching 93.66, in which the 6 component indexes on administrative reform of the SBV all had an average value of over 90%.

Up to now, the State Bank and credit institutions have achieved a number of outstanding results in implementing the plan in Decision No. 1364/QD-NHNN such as: The State Bank has researched, completed and submitted to the Government a draft Decree on the controlled testing mechanism; issued the State Bank's Circular Development Program for 2025 with a total expected number of 21 circulars; issued legal documents to promptly remove bottlenecks serving the development of science, technology, innovation and digital transformation; has been implementing training and fostering programs for officials, civil servants and public employees, especially in the fields of payment and digital banking according to the approved program to develop high-quality human resources. Credit institutions have adjusted their decisions in line with the trend of scientific and technological development, while increasing investment and improving infrastructure for development, application of science, technology, innovation and digital transformation to improve service quality, enhance experience while ensuring security, safety and increasing customer satisfaction.

For a prosperous Vietnam

General Secretary To Lam stated that the great achievements after 40 years of Doi Moi under the leadership of the Party have helped Vietnam accumulate enough position and strength for breakthrough development in the next stage. The world is in a period of epochal change, from now to 2030 is the most important period, a special opportunity, a sprint period to achieve the strategic goals for 100 years under the leadership of the Party, creating a solid foundation to achieve the goals of celebrating the 100th anniversary of the country's founding. Pointing out that the 4.0 Industrial Revolution, especially artificial intelligence and digital technology, brings opportunities that developing and underdeveloped countries can grasp to get ahead and develop rapidly, the General Secretary requested stronger institutional breakthroughs for development, removing bottlenecks and barriers, taking people and businesses as the center, mobilizing and unleashing all internal and external resources, and resources within the people; Develop science and technology synchronously and smoothly, all for the economic, cultural and social development of the country and to improve the material and spiritual life of the people.

In that spirit, while thoroughly grasping the contents of Resolution 57 of the Politburo and Resolution No. 03/NQ-CP (Resolution 03) dated January 9, 2025 of the Government promulgating the Government's Action Program to implement Resolution 57, the SBV has fully researched and reviewed the viewpoints, goals and tasks assigned to the banking sector to issue the implementation plan of the banking sector in Decision No. 1364/QD-NHNN dated March 5, 2025.

The tasks in the Plan have been specifically assigned to units under the State Bank, credit institutions, foreign bank branches and payment intermediary service providers to organize and implement, realizing the goal of making science and technology development, innovation and digital transformation the top important breakthrough, the main driving force for the banking industry to develop rapidly, sustainably and safely, contributing to the breakthrough and prosperous development of the country in the new era.

In order to raise awareness and have new breakthroughs in thinking in the Industry, the State Bank will develop a program and plan to launch a learning movement on a digital platform, to become a regular "digital learning" movement.

The Governor directed to "urgently and resolutely perfect the institution; eliminate all thoughts, concepts, and barriers that are hindering development". In particular, the Legal Department and related departments and agencies are required to review relevant regulations issued by the State Bank to promptly remove bottlenecks to serve the development of science, technology, innovation and digital transformation in the banking sector. Build and perfect the legal corridor for banking activities in the digital environment; Have flexible, creative and effective solutions to allow the use of electronic documents integrated on electronic identification accounts to replace paper documents when performing administrative procedures; soon have a plan to reduce the components of the dossier when the data has been digitized.

Infrastructure for science, technology, innovation and digital transformation in the banking sector will continue to be invested in and improved. In particular, a Decree will be developed regulating the controlled testing mechanism in the banking sector; Deploying the application of artificial intelligence in the document management and archiving system; Replacing the State Bank's reporting system in the application of Big Data-AI technology to serve the State Bank's policy management and decision-making; Applying artificial intelligence based on big data to provide personalized services to enhance customer experience; Deploying the State Bank of Vietnam's digital transformation project, deploying core utilities in the banking sector to ensure connectivity with Project 06.

To serve the national digital transformation and promote economic development, the State Bank aims to promote digital transformation, apply science and technology, and innovate in the activities of agencies in the political system by developing a plan to promote the development of Mobile Banking and develop banking services on Mobile Banking. The Governor assigned credit institutions to proactively research, develop and deploy banking products and services to support businesses, especially small and medium enterprises, cooperative business households, to implement digital transformation; Announce a list of major problems in science and technology, innovation and digital transformation in the banking sector for Vietnamese digital technology enterprises to participate in solving. At the same time, develop a program to promote the use of banking products and services in the digital environment; equip people with skills to use digital banking products and services to transact in the digital environment, creating digital trust.

The Governor of the State Bank also assigned units within the State Bank to carry out innovative breakthrough tasks with credit institutions. In particular, promoting lending by electronic means towards automating the entire process to shorten the lending time, applying data from the national database, thereby increasing the value and quantity of loans, by electronic means; Promoting the implementation of Open Banking, Open API to create many innovative products and services to serve the increasing needs of customers; Researching and deploying a modern digital core banking platform that allows banks to operate faster, smarter and in a cost-effective way, easily expanding scale and products.

The State Bank of Vietnam has established a Steering Committee for the Banking sector on science, technology, innovation, digital transformation and Project 06, chaired by Governor Nguyen Thi Hong herself, on the basis of merging the Administrative Reform Steering Committee of the State Bank of Vietnam, the Digital Transformation Steering Committee and the Working Group for Project 06 of the Banking sector. At the same time, a Working Group for the Banking sector on science, technology, innovation, digital transformation and Project 06 was established.

In addition, the banking sector has also achieved positive results in implementing Project 06. The State Bank has closely followed the directives of the Government, the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Public Security... to issue many documents to deploy and promote the implementation of the tasks of Project 06 and regularly direct the entire sector on the deployment of solutions to apply population data, chip-embedded ID cards, VNeID accounts... to serve banking operations.

These breakthroughs are the foundation for building an effective and efficient State Bank, a system of modern, self-reliant and self-reliant credit institutions as the foundation for promoting the development of the national economy to become rich and powerful, bringing Vietnam to reach high and far, reaching the goals that the Party and Uncle Ho have chosen: "Building a peaceful, unified, independent, democratic and prosperous Vietnam, contributing worthily to the world revolutionary cause".

As of April 11, 2025, the entire banking industry had more than 108.1 million individual customer records (CIFs) biometrically verified via chip-embedded CCCDs or VNeID applications, of which: 60 credit institutions have deployed chip-embedded CCCD card applications via counter devices; 56 credit institutions and 39 payment intermediary organizations have deployed chip-embedded CCCD card applications via phone applications; 32 credit institutions and 15 payment intermediary organizations are deploying VNeID applications, of which 18 units have actually deployed them.

Source: https://thoibaonganhang.vn/tao-the-vung-ben-vuon-minh-cung-dat-nuoc-163614.html