As Việt Nam’s most pioneering bank, leading the digital transformation of the banking industry and actively contributing to the nation’s ‘era of rising’, Techcombank is well suited to offering valuable insights into the future of the sector.

Its CEO, Jens Lottner, took part in and shared valuable insights at the conference 'Building a Financial Centre in Việt Nam' held in HCM City recently.

The event, organised by the Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with the HCM City People’s Committee, gathered over 400 domestic and international financial leaders and experts to discuss how HCM City can be developed into an international financial centre (IFC), learning from other international models, while retaining the city’s own 'unique identity'.

Drawing on more than 30 years of experience in strategy consulting and leadership position in the financial service industry in Asia, including five years as CEO of Techcombank, Jens Lottner was able to provide high-value insights and practical suggestions to guide the development of Việt Nam’s first IFC.

Experts discuss the establishment of the financial centre in Việt Nam. Photo courtesy of Techcombank
Jens Lottner highlighted three areas where Việt Nam could excel. The first is green finance.

Việt Nam is one of the few industrialised countries with the potential to meet all its national energy needs from renewable sources. To achieve this ambitious goal Việt Nam will need to significant increase in investment in green infrastructure and expand its deployment of green finance.

The second strength, according to Lottner, is digital financial services. In Việt Nam, one in three people owns digital assets or cryptocurrencies. Việt Nam has vast potential to develop digital financial products, including real digital assets, asset tokenisation and digital currencies. Businesses are increasingly adopting these technologies, and their practical needs will drive innovation in the digital finance sector.

The third area is trade finance. Lottner stated that this is a rapidly growing field that could be entirely reimagined through technology. Việt Nam is poised to become a smart manufacturing hub, with significant investments in artificial intelligence (AI) from major FDI corporations like Foxconn.

"We can easily envision a world where every product, such as an iPad, can be tracked from the assembly line to delivery using blockchain technology. This would integrate all related financial information seamlessly into the supply chain without additional procedures," he said.

These three areas currently lack dominant financial centres and the CEO of Techcombank believes Việt Nam has the right conditions-practical demand, talented workforce and intellectual potential-to develop capabilities in these sectors as part of an IFC .

At the conference, leading global and Vietnamese experts also acknowledged the critical role of financial institutions and banks in operating an IFC in Việt Nam.

During the third discussion session on 'Positioning Việt Nam’s Financial Centre' Lottner, shared his perspectives on the opportunities and challenges for domestic banks in the process of building a successful IFC in Việt Nam.

He highlighted that establishing an IFC in Việt Nam presents significant opportunities for domestic banks, like Techcombank.

Beyond specific legal frameworks regulated by the State Bank of Việt Nam and relevant authorities, domestic banks would need to upgrade their standards and integrate international payment transactions to meet new requirements like Basel III and IRF9. These enhancements would require increased investment in building internal capabilities aligned with international standards, a strategy that Techcombank has embarked on over the last three to four years.

Lottner also noted that the formation of an IFC in Việt Nam could enable domestic banks and businesses to secure foreign syndicated loans locally, instead of abroad. This would open doors for domestic banks to mobilise large resources of capital to fund business operations and growth, he added.

The CEO also highlighted opportunities to apply blockchain in unified financial management, as Techcom Securities, Techcombank’s brokerage subsidiary, is already doing. The use of the latest technologies, like blockchain, would serve to enhance the operation of a new IFC.

Lottner added that TCBS is pursuing a 'Wealthtech' strategy, pioneering the use of blockchain and smart contracts in bond issuance, transaction management and corporate bond ownership for Vietnamese clients. These efforts will contribute to shaping IFC products and services.

The CEO’s contributions to the national IFC strategy reaffirm Techcombank’s leading position in the banking sector and its firm commitment to being partner to Việt Nam’s sustainable development and to supporting its new 'era of rising'. — VNS

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