State Bank of Vietnam threatens to curb credit growth if banks fail to lower interest

In Official Dispatch No. 9736 issued on Wednesday, the central bank instructed banks to make decisive cuts to deposit and lending interest rates.

Banks held accountable for interest rate cuts

Banks must take responsibility before the law, the governor of the State Bank of Vietnam, and competent authorities for reducing overall interest rates.

The central bank requires banks to implement the directive throughout their entire systems and across all sales channels, ensuring actual reductions in deposit and lending rates in line with the governor's instructions at an October 19 meeting and Official Dispatch No. 9608 issued by the Monetary Policy Department on October 18.

Banks must reduce their average deposit interest rates on newly arising transactions with maturities of six months or longer by at least 0.5 percentage points per year in the final months of 2026, compared with their respective rates in the reporting period from October 11 to October 20.

The State Bank of Vietnam will monitor banks' average interest rates on newly arising transactions in the final months of 2026 through its statistical reporting system.

Those banks that fail to comply with the directive will face strict action, including possible reductions in or lower allocations of their credit growth targets.

Banks announce interest rate cuts

Several banks have announced cuts to deposit interest rates and launched preferential credit packages in recent days.

On Wednesday, Sacombank launched an additional preferential credit package worth VND20 trillion (US$760 million) for individual customers, offering lending rate reductions of 1.5-2 percentage points per year.

Effective Tuesday, Sacombank also cut deposit interest rates for maturities of six months or longer by 0.5 percentage points per year.

The bank also launched a VND40 trillion ($1.52 billion) credit program for corporate customers, offering lending rate reductions of two percentage points per year.

HDBank launched a VND10 trillion ($380 million) credit package for small- and medium-sized enterprises, slashing lending rates by 1.5 percentage points per year.

The lower lending rates apply to both existing and new borrowers, HDBank said.

The package excludes loans for real estate and securities businesses, financial trading, or borrowing to deposit money or purchase certificates of deposit and bonds at other credit institutions.

Vietcombank cut its listed deposit interest rates for maturities of six months or longer by 0.5 percentage points per year in line with the State Bank of Vietnam's policy direction.

From October 19 to December 31, Vietcombank is implementing a credit program to support production and business activities and develop priority sectors, offering lending rate reductions of 1.5-2 percentage points per year.

For certain sectors, the bank has lower short-term lending rates by up to three percentage points per year from its prevailing interest.

Agribank has announced lending rate reductions of up to two percentage points per year for priority sectors.

It is also continuing to implement a VND70 trillion ($2.66 billion) preferential credit program launched in August 2026 and scheduled to run through 2028.

The program targets small- and medium-sized enterprises, priority sectors, and new growth drivers, offering lending rates 1-2 percentage points per year below Agribank's average interest for loans with comparable maturities.