Vietnam plans roadmap to allow short selling under stock market upgrade program

Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance has outlined a plan to introduce short selling and securities lending on a controlled basis as part of its broader effort to upgrade the country’s stock market from frontier to secondary emerging status.

The proposal is part of the ministry’s implementation plan for the Prime Minister's Decision No. 2014/QĐ-TTg dated September 2025, which details the roadmap for the Vietnam stock market upgrading project.

Under the plan, the ministry has assigned the State Securities Commission (SSC) to study and gradually implement mechanisms for securities borrowing and lending, and regulated short selling through “pending settlement” and intraday trading between 2026 and 2028.

In the short term (2025-2027), the SSC will address the prefunding requirement that obliges investors to deposit money before trading, a key obstacle to foreign participation, until a central counterparty clearing (CCP) mechanism is launched.

It will also work to improve transparency on foreign ownership limits and ensure equal access to information for foreign investors.

The ministry also directed the Vietnam Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation (VSDC) to strengthen straight-through processing (STP) links between custodian banks and brokerages, while the Vietnam Stock Exchange is tasked with upgrading trading and settlement systems to handle higher volumes.

In the long term, the finance ministry plans to ease foreign ownership rules at the maximum, enhance market liquidity, and develop modern clearing infrastructure that supports partial margin requirements.

It also aims to introduce new order types, market-making mechanisms, and innovative products such as green bonds and derivatives, in line with global standards.

The ministry said the reforms are designed to modernize Vietnam’s capital markets, attract long-term foreign capital, and ensure macroeconomic and financial stability.