Vietnam has too many banks, says StanChart chief

Vietnam’s banking industry is too small to support its 80 plus banks, according to Louis Taylor, general director of Standard Chartered Vietnam Bank.

Thus the number should be scaled down to boost efficiency, he pointed out. He added that it was also necessary to have appropriate policies to create a healthy banking system.

The State Bank of Vietnam’s move to increase banks’ minimum chartered capital to VND3 trillion and their capital adequacy ratio to 9 percent was sound.

It would be relatively difficult for Vietnamese banks to raise the money and would help purge weaker banks.