Big banks hike deposit interest rates

Growing business: A shopkeeper waits for customers at her rice shop in Hanoi. To attract idle money as the economy recovers, many Vietnamese banks have increased deposit interest rates. — AFP

HANOI: Large banks are starting to join the deposit interest rate hike race along with small and medium-sized banks due to rising capital demand pressure after a long time staying out of the game.

Early this month, Agribank adjusted interest rates for long-term deposits.

Accordingly, customers who deposit money at the bank for 12 months to 24 months will enjoy a rate of 5.6% per year, up 0.1 percentage points from last month.

Similarly, the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam this month also announced a new interest rate change with an increase of 0.1 percentage point to 5.6% per year for deposits from 12 months to 36 months.

At Vietcombank, the online deposit interest rate also added 0.1 percentage points per year compared to over-the-counter deposits.

Many small and medium-sized banks earlier this year increased their rates by 0.3 to 0.6 percentage points.

Before the pandemic, the highest interest rate for 12-month savings was 7% per year.

Now, many banks are keeping it at 6.7% to 6.9%, whereas some have lifted it to more than 7%. As for the interest rate for short-term deposits of less than six months, banks are applying the ceiling rate of 4% for all terms.

Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) is currently applying the highest rates in the banking system on both over-the-counter and online channels.

In particular, the 12-month savings rate at the bank’s over-the-counter channel is currently 7.3%. Meanwhile, if depositing online, depositors at SCB are given an additional 0.15 to 0.3 percentage points, raising the maximum interest rate to 7.55% per year.

Kienlongbank offers a rate of 7.2% on a 24-month term, and 7% per year on an 18-month term, 6.95% per year on a 15-month term and 6.5% per year on a 12-month term.

NamABank is listing its over-the-counter savings rates at 6.5% per annum on a 12-month term and 6.7% per annum on terms from 18 to 23 months, but it is offering an additional interest rate of 0.7 percentage points if customers deposit online.

Banking expert Nguyen Trí Hieu told Vietnam News that to attract idle money, many banks have increased deposit interest rates significantly over the last year, adding that savings interest rates were on the rise and likely to go up further in the coming months.

“Savings interest rates in the remaining months of the year will rise due to a higher capital demand and inflationary pressure as well as a fiercer competition from other investment channels such as real estate and securities to attract idle capital flows,” he said.

Saigon Securities Incorporation’s research division forecast deposit interest rate might be adjusted by a further 1% to 2% this year. — Viet Nam News/ANN