Stepping into the Digital World of Banking and Finance

Secretary General of the Vietnam Banking Association, Nguyen Quoc Hung, stated that the fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic has had a rather negative impact on the development of the Vietnamese economy in general and the financial-banking sector in particular. However, it cannot be denied that this is also a positive factor driving the process of digital transformation faster due to the necessity of maintaining the circulation of money regularly and continuously.

The application of digital technology has helped change the face of banking, creating many new values ​​such as better customer experience; improved operational quality and services, more efficient; reduced operating costs; more innovative and secure services.

Commercial banking systems in Vietnam have been undergoing positive changes in applying information technology dynamically and creatively to business activities and operational management.

If 2-3 years ago, commercial banks in Vietnam were only beginning to grasp the concept of technology, today the race towards digital banking is lively in Vietnam.

Mobile banking applications have been upgraded to become digital banking applications with full features from opening accounts, financial transactions, investments to non-financial services.

Non-face-to-face banking activities are also becoming more common, and the use of online services by customers is gradually becoming a habit. A series of Mobile Banking applications of banks have integrated online shopping services to timely and best meet the safety needs of reality, increasing convenience for customers, especially during periods of social distancing in localities.

Sharing the same viewpoint, IDG Vietnam evaluates that the banking industry has diversified its banking products and services, but there are still notable bottlenecks.

Firstly, the legal framework for the application of new information technology is gradually improving. Secondly, the mechanism of cooperation and data sharing between credit institutions and between credit institutions and the national database system is still unclear.

Moreover, the cash transaction rate is still high. Some financial technology ecosystems have not truly interconnected with other credit institutions to create the greatest convenience for users. Additionally, the initial large cost and high-quality human resources required for digital transformation in banks are not easy tasks to solve and change overnight.

Pham Quang Minh - General Director of Mambu Vietnam, said that the application of digital technology helps change the face of banking, creating many new values ​​such as better customer experience; improved operational quality and services, more efficient; reduced operating costs; more innovative and secure services. However, the implementation of digital transformation at banks is at different levels, requiring flexible processes, architectures, and operations of enterprises (businesses), as some enterprises still consider this as more of a technology project than a business one.

Commenting on the current situation, Ms. Winnie Wong - Country Manager of Mastercard Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, shared that the future of currency is digital. The pandemic has caused much damage but from another perspective, it has also accelerated the pace into the digital world with the lifestyle and mindset of "digital priority" of consumers. "However, it will still take more time to seize the opportunities to fully win the favor of consumers with cashless payments," the Mastercard representative said.

In addition to banking, in the field of providing financial services, the securities business sector has made many efforts to digital transformation, with the emergence or upgrade, improvement of many products, and services to increase efficiency. management, experience for businesses and for investors. For the insurance sector, in the past 5 years, the life insurance market alone has achieved a high growth rate, from 25-30%. Along with that, insurance products have been diversified with more than 450 products in all fields, meeting the insurance needs of over 9.8 million policyholders.

However, technology investment in the insurance sector is still somewhat disproportionate, mobile applications are still only at a basic level, not meeting the requirements for big data of the current insurance industry such as predicting the demand of each customer group to build suitable product packages.

At the seminar, representatives of units also introduced models and experiences in developing new types of banking, securities, and insurance products and services, the products and services expected to become popular in the international financial service market and in Vietnam in the coming years.