Banks offer higher deposit rates after credit growth quota expanded

A bank teller counting money in Hanoi (Photo: VNA)

Many banks have increased their interest rates to attract more depositors after getting a credit growth quota expansion from the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV).

Last month, SBV decided to extend the credit growth limit for 11 banks to meet the rising capital demands of the economy at the end of the year.

Following this, many banks have raised their interest rates by 0.5-0.8 percent and have implemented a series of incentive programmes that offer additional interest rates for online savings or gifts to attract depositors.

With the adjustment, the highest savings interest rate in the market currently is 7.1 percent per year, but customers must meet various strict conditions, including minimum deposits.

Techcombank announced a special interest rate of 7.1 percent per year for customers depositing 999 billion VND or more with a commitment of not withdrawing the money before maturity.

For smaller deposits of only a few hundred million dong or less, depositors can choose many other banks to enjoy an interest rate of around 7 percent per year.

For deposits made at the counter, the Vietnam Russia Joint Venture Bank (VRB) tops the list with a rate of 7 percent per year, applicable for 24 and 36-month terms.

Saigon Commercial Joint Stock Bank (SCB) is also applying a high rate of 6.8 percent per year for 12, 18, 24 and 36 month deposits.

The rate of 6.7 percent per year for deposits, with terms of 12 months or more, is available at BacABank, CBBank and Kienlongbank.

For online savings, the interest rates are roughly 0.1-0.6 percent higher per year than at the counter.

NamABank offers the highest interest rate for online savings without the requirement for a large deposit amount. Customers depositing money via the bank’s e-banking application on terms of 18, 24 and 36 months can enjoy a rate of 7.1 percent per year. In addition, the rate for terms of 12 and 15 months at the bank is 6.9 percent per year, a high level in the market.

Personal bank deposit growth has slowed consecutively since March this year as depositors pour their savings into more attractive investment channels such as stock, real estate and cryptocurrency markets, amid declining deposit interest rates.

According to the SBV’s data, personal bank deposits totalled nearly 5.29 quadrillion VND (230 billion USD) by late September, down roughly 1.5 trillion VND on late August.

In July, monthly bank deposits also fell against previous months, the central bank stated, noting deposits in August decreased by some 1 trillion VND against July.

From early January to late September, personal deposits hit 150 trillion VND, a year-on-year decline of around 50 percent./.