From September 21, 2026, Viet Nam’s stock market was officially upgraded from frontier market to secondary emerging market status under FTSE Russell’s classification, marking an important step in the country’s deeper integration with international capital flows.
A turning point for the capital market
Minister of Finance Ngo Van Tuan said that, as Viet Nam has set ambitious growth targets for the coming period, the upgrading of the stock market came at the right time and was significant for attracting investment resources to support growth.
He said the inclusion of Vietnamese equities in the FTSE Russell Global Equity Index Series from September 21, 2026 marked an important milestone, opening a new phase of development for the stock market. To meet the requirements of the reclassification process, the mechanisms and policies governing capital market development have been significantly improved in recent years, focusing on three pillars: improving governance quality and market discipline while strengthening enforcement against violations; creating the greatest possible convenience for investors; and continuing to improve the legal framework in line with the development trends of modern capital markets.
The market upgrade marks a new step forward for Viet Nam’s stock market, bringing higher requirements for both the market and its regulators. This calls for continued proactive and flexible efforts to further improve mechanisms, policies and institutions for market management and supervision.
Growing interest from international investors shows that Viet Nam is gradually strengthening its position as an attractive investment destination in the region and globally. Fiona Bassett, CEO of FTSE Russell, said Viet Nam was a notable growth story in Asia. The stock market upgrade could help Viet Nam attract billions of US dollars in capital to meet its development investment needs in the coming period.
Building on the results achieved, FTSE Russell will continue to provide comprehensive support for Viet Nam’s capital market, from developing standards and improving market depth and liquidity to modernising infrastructure and strengthening the institutional investor base, contributing to Viet Nam’s success story in the new era.
The cooperation process will be carried out in two phases, including working together to develop index products for the Vietnamese market to serve domestic and international investors, while also developing risk management tools to support a more professional and deeper market.
International organisations and financial institutions have also made commitments as Viet Nam enters the transition to emerging market status. Vanguard, the world’s second-largest asset management institution, has announced plans to invest around 2.5 billion USD in Viet Nam after the stock market was officially upgraded under FTSE Russell’s classification. The investment is expected to be made over one year through FTSE funds serving millions of global investors.
Duncan Burns, Head of Investment Management and Global Equities for Asia-Pacific at Vanguard, said that foreign investors’ interest in Viet Nam’s capital market had been built on the country’s continuous reform process, strong economic growth and increasingly diverse and dynamic business sector. As the market becomes more deeply connected with international capital markets, Viet Nam’s stock market will have greater opportunities to attract foreign capital and develop new products.
Building a modern, transparent capital market
Following the upgrade, the process of moving Viet Nam’s stock market from frontier market to secondary emerging market status will be carried out in stages through September 2027, rather than taking place all at once. During this process, 27 Vietnamese stocks will also be added to the FTSE Russell Global Equity Index Series, placing Vietnamese companies alongside mid- and large-cap stocks in emerging markets worldwide.
This presents an opportunity for Viet Nam to increase its visibility among the global investment community, expand opportunities to attract investment and strengthen links with international financial markets. Foreign capital entering the Vietnamese market is also expected to come in several rounds over different stages rather than being concentrated at the time of the upgrade.
Notably, after entering the emerging market category, Viet Nam’s stock market will operate within a broader investment universe, as funds tracking emerging markets will have a basis for rebalancing their portfolios and allocating capital to Viet Nam. However, for large institutional investors, the initial stage is usually exploratory, with partial capital allocations used to test market operations and assess conditions in practice before deciding whether to increase investment exposure.
In practice, the upgrade opens up significant opportunities for Viet Nam’s stock market to gain broader and deeper access to international capital flows, but it does not guarantee long-term success, particularly in terms of improving market quality and regulatory and supervisory capacity.
The next chapter for Viet Nam’s stock market as it transitions to emerging market status will be to enhance market accessibility, meet the requirements of institutional investors and turn the opportunity created by the upgrade into international capital inflows. Key issues include improving information transparency, strengthening risk management capacity and modernising market infrastructure.
To maintain its classification and continue moving towards higher standards, the Ministry of Finance said it would focus on five major directions for developing the capital market in general and the stock market in particular. These include continuing to improve the legal framework and investment environment by proposing amendments and supplements to securities legislation and reviewing the strategy for stock market development in the coming period. The Ministry of Finance will also review and promptly address difficulties and obstacles to increase market openness, accessibility and liquidity, while continuing to modernise technological infrastructure and trading systems.
Another key task is to diversify products in order to broaden the investment universe and meet risk management needs, improve the effectiveness of market management, inspection and supervision, and strictly handle violations while protecting investors’ legitimate rights and interests. These are also key measures aimed at building a transparent, safe and sustainable stock market capable of meeting new development requirements.
