Good evening from Ho Chi Minh City. Where coffee is strong, weather is hot, and economy is faster than German cars on the Autobahn. Hope you had a fantastic weekend so far. Welcome to Bánh Mì Brief - Your weekly business update on Vietnam.
We cut through the noise and bring you the week’s must-know stories. No more scrolling through cluttered Vietnamese websites or drowning in article overload.
This is Brief #1. Let‘s dive right in.
MARKETS
Banking Bonanza: Vietnam’s banks ride profit surge and IPO wave
Vietnam’s banking sector is on fire in 2025. With GDP growth of 7.5% in H1, banks pushed credit up nearly 10%, helping profits skyrocket across the board. Private players like SeaBank and VietinBank posted jaw-dropping profit leaps of 81% and 46%, respectively. A splash of new US trade deals and FTSE Russell upgrade rumors turned up the heat - sparking a 28% VN-Index rally since April as investors piled in for the action.
On the capital markets front, look out for two big IPOs this year: Techcombank’s brokerage unit (TCBS) plans to raise around $460 million in a late 2025 listing, backed by strong earnings and high valuation. Meanwhile, VPBank’s securities arm (VPBankS) is aiming for a Q4 IPO, riding on the investor buzz.
The banking sector appears to be one of the country’s brightest economic engines heading into the second half of 2025.