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Banks are no longer confined to the traditional role of intermediating between depositors and borrowers. In the Đổi Mới 2.0 era, the banking sector is shifting toward creating and enabling economic development through broader financial services and digital platforms, according to Dr. Le Duy Bình.
In earlier periods, going to a bank was largely straightforward: savers deposited money, while borrowers pledged assets as collateral to access loans. Today, digital tools allow customers to receive and transfer funds without visiting branches. A small grocery store owner can generate a QR code to receive payments, and residents can pay for public services online.
From a wider perspective, businesses increasingly need more than lending. They require integrated solutions spanning payments, guarantees, supply chain financing, and cash flow management. Dr. Le Duy Bình said banks in the new era are no longer passive institutions waiting for customers, but entities that help create the economy.
Dr. Le Duy Bình described the relationship between banks and the economy as symbiotic. Banks cannot develop if businesses and other sectors do not, while the economy cannot break through without a flexible financial system to support it.
In this framing, “banking as a creator” goes beyond supplying capital. It involves proactively building the environment, conditions, and opportunities for economic actors to grow.
State Bank of Vietnam data cited in the article shows rapid progress in digital adoption and credit information access:
The article links the shift in banking roles to changing customer requirements. Enterprises increasingly seek cash flow management, payment solutions, trade finance, and connections to global supply chains. Individuals, meanwhile, need integrated financial ecosystems covering payments, savings, and investment.
It also notes that banks themselves are being pushed to change. Lending revenue—once the core—gradually faces replacement by non-credit services such as payments, guarantees, and trade finance, a trend described as consistent with global banking developments.
To accompany enterprise ecosystems, the article describes a trend in which banks link financing to the entire value chain rather than extending isolated credit. In this approach, some banks reposition toward “accompanying” and “creating” partners.
Saigon-Hanoi Bank (SHB) is presented as an example of this strategy. The article says SHB positions itself as a bank supplying capital, products, and services to strategic partners, major ecosystem players, supply chains, and individual customers. It also highlights cooperation with groups, large corporations, leading enterprises, and large ecosystems, while connecting resources, creating value, and promoting sustainable development.
The article states that this model helps SHB grow both in breadth and depth within customer ecosystems, offering greater resilience and wider ripple effects than traditional transaction banking.
The article says SHB’s digital transformation foundation is built on “5 FIRST”: Data + AI First, People First, Cloud First, Security First, and Mobile First. It describes this as a platform to enhance customer experience and increase capacity to serve large corporate clients, supply chains, strategic partners, and individual customers within a synchronized financial ecosystem.
It also notes that, by understanding a partner’s financial health, banks can grant credit lines based on cash flow and credibility rather than collateral alone. The article attributes this to Dr. Le Duy Bình, adding that funds can be injected at the right time to help businesses optimize resources, reduce transaction costs, and improve operating efficiency.
SHB’s strategy is described as prudent, linking credit to core sectors and high-spillover enterprises instead of pursuing rapid growth. The article says SHB established relationships with state-owned groups in the early 2000s, including Vietnam National Coal and Mineral Industries Group and Vietnam Rubber Group, and that the network has since expanded into infrastructure, energy, and chemicals—areas expected to pull other industries along, including Tasco, Vietnam’s Chemicals Corporation, and Bình Sơn Refinery.
From an economic perspective, Dr. Le Duy Bình argues that directing capital to backbone industries creates a multiplier effect and helps banks reduce transaction costs through economies of scale.
The article also cites efficiency performance: SHB’s 2025 CIR was 22.4%, placing it among the most efficient banks in the system.
The article reports that SHB’s integrated approach—combining lending, cash management, and digital banking within a closed ecosystem—has produced measurable outcomes. In 2025, SHB’s pre-tax profit reached VND 15,028 billion, up 30% year-on-year and equal to 104% of the shareholder meeting’s plan. Net interest income exceeded VND 20,200 billion, while service income rose 154% to VND 3,200 billion.
The article contrasts Đổi Mới and Đổi Mới 2.0, saying the latter requires higher-quality growth, digital transformation, green development, and deeper integration into global value chains. It highlights digital transformation as a key role for banks, noting that cashless payments, digital banking, and fintech support the broader foundation for e-commerce and the digital economy.
Experts cited in the article assess that without rapid financial innovation and banks’ embrace of ESG standards, digital transformation for people and businesses cannot be as robust. Banks are also described as playing a role in connecting international capital to priority sectors.
The article concludes with SHB’s stated philosophy of a “bank that creates happiness,” describing it as a realization of a sustainable symbiotic relationship. It says placing people at the center and using transparency and balanced interests as guiding principles helps create not only profits but also value for society.
It frames SHB’s positioning—“A national-scale bank for a new generation”—as a commitment to accompany the country and enterprises, build growth ecosystems, and contribute to a fast, sustainable, self-reliant, and prosperous Vietnam.
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