The State Bank of Vietnam has allowed the Orient Commercial Joint Stock Bank (OCB) to sell a 20 per cent stake to France’s BNP Paribas bank. BNP Paribas has become OCB’s strategic shareholder since it acquired a 10 per cent stake of this bank in 1997. OCB was founded in Ho Chi Minh City in 1996. It now has a total charter capital of VND3.14 trillion. As one of leading European groups in the field... 

One of the ways in which banks are planning to increase their charter capital this year is to have their strategic partners acquire a greater stake – from the current 10 to 20 per cent. However, it is not very clear if this move, aimed primarily at meeting new minimum charter capital requirements, will work for everyone. Most of the applications that have been made in this regard are yet to be approved,... 

Orient Commercial Bank (OCB) and its foreign strategic investor BNP Paribas on Wednesday signed an agreement to cooperate in cash management service. The cooperation will help OCB learn experience from BNP Paribas’ cash management service, said Trinh Van Tuan, CEO of the local bank. “The cooperation comes at the right time, not only creating an opportunity for OCB to cooperate with PNB Paribas... 

Scores of local banks are considering hiking foreign partner stake to raise charter capital. The Orient Commercial Joint Stock Bank (OCB) is looking for government approval to continue selling stocks to its foreign strategic partner France-based BNP Paribas in a bid to hike its charter capital from current VND2.6 trillion ($125.6 million) to VND3 trillion ($145 million) in 2011. BNP Paribas currently... 

French banking giant BNP Paribas is planning to list its shares on the Hong Kong stock exchange, a report said Monday, in a bid that is likely to boost its profile in Asia, especially China. The lender has submitted an application to the southern Chinese city’s bourse, with a listing planned as early as July, the Chinese-language Ming Pao Daily News reported, quoting an unnamed source. A BNP... 

Local commercial joint stock banks are backing away from courting strategic foreign partners this year. Western Bank general manager Dang Duc Toan said it would be hard for his bank to sell its stake to foreign strategic partners this year as foreign banking institutions were also coping with post-financial crisis difficulties. “This time is not right for us to find foreign strategic partners, thus... 

This publication is partly cited from FineIntel’s Industry Update. Our monthly industry update is a publication designed to provide meaningful insight into today’s industries in Vietnam. We encourage our readers to submit suggestions for topics that they would like see covered in future issues. While FineIntel can not cover each and every topic, we will do our best to provide the fullest coverage... 

Most Vietnamese commercial banks that have forged strategic cooperation with foreign banks have reported positive results and learned much from their experienced partners Over the past few years, many foreign banks have been keen to enter Vietnam given the country’s impressive economic growth. One way to tap into the potential local market is finding a suitable local partner. This is a faster and... 

The Viet Nam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) signed ISDA master agreements with three foreign banks to limit risks on interest rate and currency exchange rate rises. The banks were France’s BNP Paribas, Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), and Standard Chartered Bank of the UK. The International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA), a trade organisation for...