Nguyen Xuan Bac, Deputy Director of the Credit Department, announced this information at a press conference on banking performance results for the first six months on 2/7. Total outstanding loans across the entire system increased by 18% compared to the same period last year.

According to Nguyen Xuan Bac, credit for trade and services accounted for 70,07%, while outstanding loans for agriculture, forestry, and fisheries were 6,13%. The remaining portion, 23,8%, belonged to industry and construction.

"Capital flows continue to be directed into production, business, and priority sectors, while credit to areas with potential risks is closely monitored and controlled", Nguyen Xuan Bac stated.

Nguyen Xuan Bac, Deputy Director of the Credit Department (State Bank of Vietnam), answers questions at the State Bank of Vietnam press conference on 2/7. Photo: State Bank of Vietnam.

Nguyen Xuan Bac, Deputy Director of the Credit Department (State Bank of Vietnam), answers questions at the State Bank of Vietnam press conference on 2/7. Photo: State Bank of Vietnam.

The State Bank of Vietnam expects system-wide credit growth to be around 15% this year. The credit quota mechanism, maintained by the agency for a decade, serves as a tool to control lending quality and achieve other macroeconomic objectives such as interest rates, money supply, and inflation.

However, the system has faced a significant challenge for many years: capital mobilization growth consistently lags behind credit growth. Pham Chi Quang, Director of the Monetary Policy Department, highlighted this issue at the press conference, noting that on average, during the 2021-2025 period, credit growth was always about 3,8 percentage points higher than mobilization growth.

As of 15/6, credit growth reached approximately 6,38%, while capital mobilization increased by only about 4,3%. This indicates a persistent gap of over 2 percentage points, which puts significant pressure on the system's liquidity safety indicators, Quang explained.

According to a State Bank representative, Vietnam's banking system's loan-to-deposit ratio (LDR) currently fluctuates around 112-113%, a quite high level. This means that for every 100 VND in mobilized capital, the system lends out approximately 112-113 VND. Other capital sources must cover the difference. Despite this, all banks have met customer withdrawal demands and have not experienced a liquidity crunch. Nevertheless, the significant disparity between mobilized capital and capital utilization needs has led to an upward trend in mobilization interest rates, especially since late November 2025.

To support bank liquidity, the Government instructed the Ministry of Finance and the State Bank of Vietnam in late June to study increasing the proportion of State Treasury term deposits at commercial banks. Temporarily idle state funds are prioritized for advancing loans to central and local budgets. Any unused portion will be used to repurchase government bonds or placed as term deposits at commercial banks. Previously, legal regulations stipulated that the total limit for using temporarily idle state funds for term deposits at banks and repurchasing government bonds could not exceed 50%.

Concurrently, the State Bank has adjusted several technical safety ratios, allowing a portion of State Treasury deposit balances to be included in banks' safety ratios. Moving forward, if necessary, the regulatory agency will continue to research and adjust regulations to help the system improve its safety indicators.

Trong Hieu