•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Cashless payments continued to expand in the first three months of 2026 as the banking sector accelerated digital transformation and broadened the digital financial ecosystem for both people and enterprises. Non-cash transactions rose 37.98% year on year in number, while transaction value increased 14.22%.
Internet channel payments recorded the strongest growth, increasing 65.68% in volume and 28.85% in value. Mobile channel payments also expanded, up 33.22% in volume and 8.35% in value. QR payments grew 16.43% in volume, while value surged 52.4%, indicating faster adoption of QR for higher-value transactions.
Traditional payment methods are gradually narrowing. By end-March 2026, the market had 20,699 ATMs, down 3.01% from a year earlier, while POS devices reached 772,552, up 0.53%. ATM transactions declined 9.29% in volume, pointing to reduced cash withdrawal demand and a shift toward digital payment methods.
Mobile Money continues to play a key role in expanding financial inclusion, particularly in rural, mountainous, remote, border, and island areas. By 31 March 2026, total Mobile Money accounts registered and active reached 11.45 million. Transactions via the service totaled 5.64 million, with a total value of 154.34 billion dong.
Data connectivity and identity verification are described as key enablers of digital banking. The sector has invested in data infrastructure to ensure data is “accurate, sufficient, clean, live, consistent, and shared.” As of 24 April 2026, more than 156.6 million biometric verifications had been completed across customer records, including over 154.5 million individuals and 2.13 million organizational records. The initiative is intended to help eliminate fake accounts and improve identity accuracy and system transparency.
Biometric verification features have been integrated across multiple channels and institutions, including the National Credit Information Center and other agencies. The article also notes that 57 banking and 39 payment institutions have integrated biometric verification on Mobile Banking, 63 credit institutions conduct identity checks at branches using chip-based IDs, and 32 banks and 15 payment intermediaries are integrating VNeID, with 21 entities officially implementing it.
The central bank has completed the consolidation of several data sources into the national data center and continues enriching data through API links to the Government Office and the State Audit Office via the NDXP platform. This is aimed at building an interconnected data ecosystem to support more effective governance.
Security remains a priority. The central bank has coordinated with relevant authorities to combat cybercrime and deployed multiple technological measures to protect users. A highlighted achievement is the SIMO system, which allows member institutions to share information on suspicious accounts to enable timely alerts and prevent fraudulent transactions.
As of 27 April 2026, SIMO had been rolled out at 149 units (99 credit institutions and 50 payment intermediaries). It has issued alerts to more than 3.8 million customers, with over 1.2 million stopped or canceled transactions, totaling more than 4.3 trillion dong in value. The system supports multi-channel alerting through Mobile Banking, Internet Banking, ATMs, and in-branch channels to improve user experience and risk prevention.
Administrative reforms are presented as a pillar of modernization. The proposals aim to cut 269 of 298 administrative procedures (90.3%) and reduce 255 business conditions. In 2025, 32 additional public online services were introduced, bringing the total to 57, with full digitalization of eligible procedures achieved.
In early 2026, the article reports progress including digitization of records at 73.97%, electronic results at 78.87%, and data reuse at 68.9%. A centralized administrative service system processed over 5,300 records in the first four months, with citizen and enterprise satisfaction consistently above 90%.
The sector is also promoting a digital culture and innovation through campaigns aligned with guidance on science, technology, and digital transformation. The article cites 1,484 innovations, including 37 digital innovations registered on the Innovation Portal. More than 2,600 “Digital Ambassadors” and “Digital Nuclei” have been established to spread the digital transformation ethos and encourage technology adoption in operations.
Overall, the results indicate that banking digital transformation is expanding in scale and deepening in scope, supporting the digital economy and improving services for people and enterprises.
Premium gym chains are entering a “golden era” that is ending or already in decline, as rising operating costs collide with shifting consumer preferences toward more flexible, community-based ways to exercise. Long-term memberships are shrinking, margins are pressured by higher rents and facility expenses, and competition from smaller, more personalized…
