He said the city pledges to create a stable and conducive environment for financial organisations and institutions to operate on a long-term basis in Vietnam’s southern economic hub.
According to Phong, HCMC has identified finance as one of its nine key services since 2001 but the road to become a financial centre is proving to be a difficult and complicated process.
He said that financial market restructuring remains slow, while the stock market capitalisation is low, at 52% of its GDP, compared with Singapore’s 243%, Kuala Lumpur’s 143% and Bangkok’s 120%.
This has exacerbated the city’s already serious shortage of resources, slowed down economic growth, and resulted in an overburdened infrastructure, which ultimately makes the city less attractive and undermines its prospects as a financial centre.
But Phong affirmed that HCMC has determined the financial centre status as a key to drive the municipal economy forward.
He added that city pledges to do its utmost to lay the foundation for financial organisations to make strong investment into the city.
Phong informed the forum that a plan to build Ho Chi Minh City into an international and regional financial centre will be submitted to the central government in June 2020, hoping that it will form the basis for the city to transform from broad-based growth to focused growth.
Speaking at the forum, Deputy PM Vu Duc Dam noted that Ho Chi Minh City’s goal of becoming a financial centre is the desire of not only the city but also the entire country, therefore it is necessary to introduce special policies to encourage innovative ideas.
