Vietnam

Standard Chartered’s credentials in the environment, social and governance field are well known. Like many others, the bank has committed to reach zero carbon emissions from its operations by 2030 and from its financing 20 years later.

HSBC, which opened in Vietnam in 1995, is now a full-scale bank with a solid franchise. It wins Asiamoney’s award for best international bank in Vietnam thanks to the kind of advice it offered clients in the past year, stressing the need to stay focused rather than chasing every opportunity in this fast-growing economy.

Viet Capital Securities has become Vietnam’s leading investment bank and brokerage house since it was set up 15 years ago.

Saigon-Hanoi Commercial Joint Stock Bank’s corporate social responsibility programme marries caring for the community with ecological and environmental protection.

Small and medium-sized enterprises are essential for economic development and job creation in most economies. But in a frontier market like Vietnam, they are even more critical, so it is important that banks cater to their needs.

Citi is a strong corporate banking force in Vietnam. It has been there since 1994 and now has two branches – one in Hanoi, the other in Ho Chi Minh City – and about 800 staff.

When a lender’s motto is “change banking, change lives”, it attracts attention. Vietnam Technological and Commercial Joint Stock Bank, also known as Techcombank, should be taken seriously with its ambitions to become one of the top 10 banks in southeast Asia and more than triple its market capitalization to $20 billion in the next five years.

Credit Suisse’s global footprint gives it an edge when it comes to taking pole position in Vietnam’s investment banking industry. It also helps that the Swiss firm is one of the few international banks with a comprehensive frontier-market franchise, including a big focus on Vietnam.