Singapore’s United Overseas Bank to build headquarters at Vietnam’s International Financial Center

This was revealed at a meeting between Standing Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Hoa Binh and Singaporean Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong on Monday.

UOB was the first Singapore bank to set up a representative office in Vietnam. This was in 1992, and in 1995 it opened a wholly foreign-owned branch in HCMC.

Wee Ee Cheong, deputy chairman and CEO of UOB, who had met Binh met on Sunday, said the bank plans to hike its Vietnamese subsidiary’s capital by 20% to VND10 trillion (US$380 million) to expand operations in the country, which it considers a strategic market in Southeast Asia.

The International Financial Center, approved by the National Assembly last June, is being established in two locations, with Da Nang City being the other.

Some local lenders and financial institutions have expressed interest in setting up offices in the center’s HCMC location, including MB Bank, Vietcombank and VietinBank.

The government has called on Singaporean enterprises, banks and funds to set up bases at the financial center.

Yong described the establishment of an international financial center as a correct and timely policy decision by Vietnam, and said Singapore would support and share operational experience with it and promote financial connectivity between Singaporean and Vietnamese financial centers.

Also on Monday Binh met with executives from some 20 leading Singaporean enterprises and investment funds.

They said Vietnam should ensure policy stability and quickly complete the legal framework for digital assets and financial technology.

Singapore is the second largest investor in Vietnam (behind South Korea) out of 153 countries and territories who have investments here. It has invested more than US$90 billion in 4,400 active projects.

The Vietnam–Singapore Industrial Park (VSIP) now has 21 parks in 14 provinces and cities. The two nations are also stepping up economic and investment cooperation, both in new and promising areas such as carbon credits, digital technology, agriculture, energy, and next-generation VSIP 2.0.