Vietcombank sold 23.7 million shares of Military Bank between November 16 and 30. - Photo MBBViet Nam News HÀ NỘI — Vietcombank (VCB) has recently announced it sold a large number of Military Bank (MBB) and Eximbank (EIB) shares on the stock markets to reduce its ownership ratios at the banks to 5 per cent in each as regulated by the central bank. Accordingly, VCB sold 23.7 million MBB shares from November 16 to 30, reducing its holding at MBB from 6.97 per cent to 5.87 per cent. MBB shares were traded at VNĐ20,000-21,000 each on the HCM Stock Exchange (HoSE) during that time. More than 35 million EIB shares were also sold by VCB on December 4, when EIB shares were traded at nearly VNĐ15,100 apiece on HoSE. The sale moved VCB’s holding at EIB to 5.39 per cent from 8.24 per cent. The average prices of the sales were higher than the starting prices of VNĐ19,641for MBB shares and nearly VNĐ14,500 for EIB shares. VCB will have to continue … [Read more...] about Vietcombank reduces holdings at other banks
Banking
Malaysian bank launches mobile banking app
Malaysian-owned CIMB Bank opens a branch in HCM City on December 4 (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNA) - Malaysia’s CIMB Bank launched in Vietnam a mobile banking app, OCTO, its first in any market, on December 4. It could be used to fulfill a range of banking needs from registration, verification to card activation and making transactions on the phone, avoiding the need to queue at branches or struggle to find a convenient time, the bank said. “Vietnam is one of the most inspirational success stories in Asia, with strong economic growth and tremendous potential for development,” Tengku Dato’ Sri Zafrul Aziz, Group CEO of CIMB Group, said. At the same time, digital banking is an inevitable trend with the advancement of technology, he said. “It will help banks reduce their cost-to-income ratio from 50 percent to 20 percent or 30 percent. Developing digital banking is a key strategy for CIMB in Southeast Asia and Vietnam is our first pilot market.” … [Read more...] about Malaysian bank launches mobile banking app
CIMB Bank launches mobile banking app
Malaysian-owned CIMB Bank opened a branch in HCM City on Tuesday. VNS Photo Viet Nam News HCM CITY — Malaysia’s CIMB Bank on Tuesday launched a mobile banking app, OCTO, its first in any market. It could be used to fulfill a range of banking needs from registration, verification to card activation and making transactions on the phone, avoiding the need to queue at branches or struggle to find a convenient time, the bank said. “Việt Nam is one of the most inspirational success stories in Asia, with strong economic growth and tremendous potential for development,” Tengku Dato’ Sri Zafrul Aziz, Group CEO of CIMB Group, said. At the same time digital banking is an inevitable trend with the advancement of technology, he said. “It will help banks reduce their cost-to-income ratio from 50 per cent to 20 per cent or 30 per cent. Developing digital banking is a key strategy for CIMB in Southeast Asia and Việt Nam is our first pilot … [Read more...] about CIMB Bank launches mobile banking app
Central bank’s exchange rate hits highest level in months
Vietcombank posted VNĐ23,260-23,350 per dollar for its buying and selling rates, down by VNĐ15 from Monday. - Photo VietcombankViet Nam News HÀ NỘI — The central bank’s daily reference exchange rate of the US dollar against the Vietnamese đồng has been adjusted up slightly in recent sessions, pushing it to the highest level since early this year. On Monday, the central bank appreciated the value of the dollar against the đồng by VNĐ5 over last Friday to VNĐ22,755 per dollar, the highest rate since January 2018. On Tuesday, the central bank kept the rate unchanged. With the current trading band of +/- 3 per cent, the ceiling rate applied by commercial banks for Tuesday is VNĐ23,437 per dollar and the floor rate is VNĐ22,073 per dollar. At commercial banks, the price of the dollar saw decreases on Tuesday. Vietcombank posted VNĐ23,260-23,350 per dollar for its buying and selling rates, down by VNĐ15 … [Read more...] about Central bank’s exchange rate hits highest level in months
Hungarian Central Bank launches new loan program to boost SMEs
Photo: menafn.com "The new growth loan program, with a total of 1,000 billion forints (3.5 billion USD) will be initiated in the beginning of 2019," MNB posted on its official website. Accordingly, the MNB provides zero-interest rates to credit institutions for refinancing funds, which can be transferred to SMEs at a rate of maximum 2.5 percent, well under market-levels, according to the central bank. The loan will be available for investment purposes only, (including financial leasing), only in Hungarian forints, with a maturity of more than 3 years and specific utilization opportunities. This loan is the fourth chapter of specific low-interest loan programs of MNB, the first three programs took place between 2013 and 2017 in a total value of 2,800 billion forints (9.8 billion USD). Experts estimated that the program's contribution to Hungarian GDP has been between 2 and 2.5 percent. According to the latest official figures, the Hungarian economy grew by 4.4 percent year-on-year in … [Read more...] about Hungarian Central Bank launches new loan program to boost SMEs