Vietnam to build one international financial center operating in two cities

Vietnam seeks to develop one international financial center that will operate in Ho Chi Minh City and Danang, says Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Hoa Binh.

Initially, Vietnamese authorities' idea was to build one international financial center in HCMC - the country's largest economic hub in the south, and another at regional levels in the central city of Danang. The current idea of building only one has received support from many experts.

Binh on Tuesday chaired a conference to discuss the latest draft National Assembly Resolution on developing such a center in Vietnam.

The draft will be submitted to the National Assembly for approval at the legislature's ongoing working session, which will last until June 30.

The international financial center is expected to become a solid foundation for mobilizing high-quality financial resources to support national development.

It will also contribute to enhancing state governance capacity, fostering national competitiveness, and promoting deeper and more effective national integration into the global financial system.

Richard McClellan, global ambassador of Terne Holding and former director of the Tony Blair Institute, said that if Vietnam aims to build an international financial center with global standing, it must approach the concept of the center not as a separate geographical area, but as a unified operating system. This model allows synergy, not rivalry, between Da Nang and HCMC, he added.

Vietnam can also establish two international financial centers in those cities to optimize their own advantages, he suggested, adding that the two centers will support each other and grow together.

Meanwhile, Andreas Baumgartner, CEO and founder of The Metis Institute, said the dual-city international financial center model is essential to ensuring unified management.

Many experts emphasized that, in addition to hard infrastructure, Vietnam should pay more attention to developing "soft" and digital infrastructure to ensure the effective operation of the center. There must also be a well-prepared plan for training and developing human resources to ensure smooth operations.