Vietnam’s credit growth doubles

By Dat Nguyen June 20, 2021 | 09:24 pm PT

An employee counts Vietnamese banknotes at a bank in Hanoi. Photo by VnExpress/Giang Huy.

Bank credit growth from January 1 to June 15 was 5.1 percent, double the rate recorded in the same period last year.

The jump came despite the fourth wave of Covid-19 because the State Bank of Vietnam made monetary policy more flexible and directed banks to focus on funding manufacturing and reduce lending to sectors with high risks, its deputy governor, Dao Minh Tu, said Monday.

Average loan interests in April fell by 0.3 percentage point from December, he added.

The central bank has also directed banks to delay debt payment or lower or scrap interests on customers affected by the Covid-19 pandemic to help their business recover.

Nearly 676,700 customers have seen the interests of their debts removed or reduced with a total outstanding loan of nearly VND1,278 trillion.

The bank will continue to pursue a flexible monetary policy until the end of the year keep inflation under control and support an economic recovery.

The pandemic has boosted demand for online payment. In the first four months internet payment value surged 31 percent year-on-year.