Vanguard eyes Vietnam market entry after upgrade to 'secondary emerging' status

Global investment giant Vanguard, which manages nearly $13 trillion in assets, has expressed plans to open indirect capital and trading accounts in Vietnam, following the country’s recent upgrade by FTSE Russell to secondary emerging market status.

The remarks were made during a meeting in Melbourne between a delegation from the State Securities Commission of Vietnam (SSC) and representatives from Vanguard, one of the world’s largest asset managers.

The discussion focused on investment opportunities, cooperation, and measures to attract more foreign capital to Vietnam’s stock market, according to the SSC.

Vanguard representatives commended Vietnam’s efforts to reform its legal framework and improve the investment environment, particularly through new policies aimed at facilitating foreign investor participation.

The firm shared plans to begin investment activities once the market upgrade takes effect, describing the process of account registration under the new regulations as an “important pilot step” that would give global investors firsthand experience with Vietnam’s investment landscape.

Vietnam's stock market will be reclassified from "frontier" to "secondary emerging" from September 21 next year, subject to an interim review in March 2026, FTSE Russell stated in a release last month.

The meeting reaffirmed the SSC’s commitment to modernizing Vietnam’s securities market, improving transparency, and creating a safe, professional and sustainable investment environment in line with international standards.

Earlier the same day, SSC chairwoman Vu Thi Chan Phuong met with Joseph Longo, chairman of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), as part of the SSC delegation’s working visit to Australia from November 10-14.

Longo congratulated Vietnam on its market status upgrade, calling it a major milestone in the country’s capital market development.

Since signing an MoU in August 2024, ASIC and SSC have organized joint conferences, training programs and workshops on sustainable finance, corporate governance, market surveillance, and fraud prevention.

Chairwoman Phuong welcomed ASIC’s continued cooperation and proposed future collaboration in bond market development, fund management, and corporate governance training. She also noted that Vietnam has recently approved a pilot program for digital asset trading, and asked for Australia’s experience in regulating crypto and tokenized assets.

Longo said ASIC was ready to share its expertise in managing digital asset markets and continue supporting Vietnam’s financial sector reform.

The meeting concluded with both sides reaffirming their intention to strengthen regulatory cooperation and deepen ties between the two securities markets.