Int’l investment funds interested in Danang’s financial center: city leader

International investors and financial investment funds from the U.S., Singapore, the Middle East, and Switzerland are highly interested in developing a financial center in Danang, says Ho Ky Minh, the central city’s Vice Chairman.

The center is expected to feature innovations, green finance, financial technology, and trade finance, leveraging the city's advantageous geopolitical and economic position in the Indo-Pacific region, Minh said at a conference on the development of international financial centers in Vietnam, held in Danang on Thursday.

To support the establishment of the international financial center complex, Danang has earmarked 6.17 hectares of land with the best connectivity and infrastructure for offices, resorts, conference centers, entertainment areas, and other amenities, he noted.

In the long term, to meet development needs, Danang plans to create new land areas - an additional 62 hectares, to form a comprehensive complex with an increased scale and development space.

This expansion is expected to boost the city’s attractiveness to strategic infrastructure investors and those operating within the financial center, Minh added.

In November 2024, Vietnam’s highest decision-making body, the Politburo, greenlighted the establishment of an international financial center in Ho Chi Minh City and a regional financial center in Danang. The government's action plan was mentioned in its Resolution 259/NQ-CP dated December 31, 2024.

Andy Khoo, a representative of the Singaporean investment fund Terne Holdings, noted that in the north, Hanoi serves as the main center for policy planning and state management. In the south, HCMC acts as a global gateway for capital markets and corporate finance. Notably, Danang is emerging as a "strategic bridge" between these two economic powerhouses.

With its location in central Vietnam, the Danang financial center will provide nationwide access to financial services, reducing excessive dependence on a single financial center. While the international financial center in HCMC focuses on capital markets, Danang’s can specialize in green finance, trade facilitation, and fintech innovations, aligning with global market trends.

“The Danang center serves as an innovation lab, testing new financial technologies and integrating them into the already developed ecosystem of HCMC,” Khoo said.

At the event, standing Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Hoa Binh emphasized five key issues that the two cities and relevant agencies need to focus on while developing the centers.

As a strong legal framework is crucial for the effective operation of such financial centers, Binh committed to creating an open, transparent, and reliable legal framework that meets international standards.

On the issue of human resources, he stressed the need for talented professionals. Currently, Vietnam lacks experts in management, operations, risk handling, and dispute resolution related to international financial centers.

He urged the two cities to prepare teams of experts and send them to intern at international financial centers worldwide to ensure these professionals are ready to operate the centers in HCMC and Danang immediately.

The Deputy Prime Minister also emphasized the importance of infrastructure, including information technology, living and working environments, and a supportive economic ecosystem for international financial centers, which should include shopping centers, insurance services, and other related sectors.

“To attract investors, we need to chart our own path, focusing on green finance, blockchain, fintech, insurance, and intellectual property, as suggested by experts,” Binh noted. He also stressed the need for the international financial centers in HCMC and Danang to strengthen connections with other international financial centers and experts for optimal operations.

During the conference, the Danang People’s Committee handed over MOUs it signed with Makara Capital Investment Fund, Terne Holdings, and the Vietnam Blockchain Association. The city also delivered an MOU to VinaCapital and Dr. Philipp Roesler, former Vice Chancellor of Germany.

The University of Economics under the University of Danang handed over cooperation agreements with TMC Academy (Singapore), Yuan Ze University (Taipei, Taiwan), and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).