Vietnam should enhance foreign investor participation to boost local bank brands: Harvard expert

At the forum 'Strategies to Bring Vietnam Brand to the Global Stage and Recommendations for Banking Sector,' organized by Thoi Bao Ngan Hang (Banking Times) newspaper on Monday, Professor John Quelch from Harvard Business School recommended that the State Bank of Vietnam increase the level of foreign investor participation in Vietnamese banks.

It is known that Japanese investors are currently investing in banks in Vietnam.

“If the banking system wants to maintain its health, it needs to increase the participation of foreign investors through mergers and acquisitions," Prof. Quelch said.

"This would help banks scale up and have more resources to invest in IT and improve service quality."

With over 40 years of international experience in finance and banking, Peter Verhoeven, an expert in corporate restructuring and financial strategy, noted that trust is crucial to brand value.

For banks, regulators must monitor operations to ensure public trust. 

This trust is based on effective internal governance and meeting operational safety requirements.

Banks must also be cautious when lending because they safeguard people's savings. 

Therefore, lending must be based on a thorough assessment of the borrower's capacity.

Along with ensuring customer trust, a key element of a bank’s brand is the customer journey when interacting with the bank in the context of rapid technological advancement.

The customer journey means banks should invest in technology so that customers can access services and products via mobile phones, without having to visit a physical branch.

“In short, banks should offer services that are cheaper and faster for customers,” Prof. Quelch recommended.

Pham Thanh Ha, deputy governor of the State Bank of Vietnam, said that the prime minister had approved the strategy for the development of the Vietnamese banking sector to 2025, with a vision toward 2030.

One of the goals of the strategy is for two to three Vietnamese commercial banks to be among the top 100 banks with the largest brand value in Asia.

This goal is not only about asset scale but also about affirming the reputation, brand, and competitiveness of Vietnam’s banking system.

Ha also shared that according to the 2025 Brand Finance ranking, 13 Vietnamese banks had made it to the list of the top 500 banks with the highest brand value globally.

The central bank will continue to improve the legal framework, encourage innovation, promote digitalization of banking operations, and enhance competitiveness.

Credit institutions are required to develop comprehensive branding strategies aligned with long-term development and international integration strategies.