HÀ NỘI — Many banks are promoting the use of digital signatures in their business processes, gradually replacing physical signatures and seals on traditional documents and records, shortening processing time and promoting online transactions.

ACB was the latest to join the trend, as it has signed a comprehensive cooperation agreement with VNPT Group to expand collaboration in finance, banking and digital technology, especially digital signature services and related digital services, in the next five years.

The connection between ACB's financial capabilities and VNPT’s national digital infrastructure is expected not only to expand the service ecosystem, but also to promote the digitalisation process in the finance and banking industry, with an aim of building safer and more convenient digital services.

According to ACB General Director Từ Tiến Phát, digital signatures are no longer only for businesses, but have gradually become popular with individual customers. When applying for unsecured loans or credit cards, customers can now complete the entire process online without going to the bank, using digital signatures to authenticate transactions.

VietinBank has also made moves in this area. Thus far, the bank has implemented an online disbursement service on its eFAST platform, allowing corporate customers to digitally sign documents such as promissory notes, credit agreements or guarantees.

Similarly, BIDV has integrated a remote digital signature solution into its loan application process on the BIDV Home app, enabling customers to complete home or car loan transactions entirely online, without needing to visit a branch.

Meanwhile, TPBank has provided a remote digital signature solution on the TPBank Biz platform, allowing businesses to digitally sign on various devices without using a USB Token.

There is also an entire ecosystem of services revolving around digital signatures. Although the actual cost of a digital signature is not high – only a few dozen thousands of Vietnamese đồng – the total cost can increase due to customers using them multiple times during transactions. Each confirmation often requires a digital signature, which is similar to an electronic signature.

Electronic signatures have been used in civil transactions since the Electronic Transactions Law of 2005 came into effect. Aside from electronic signatures, banks now also apply many other authentication methods, such as login passwords combined with one-time verification codes sent to customers to confirm online transactions.

However, due mostly to the relatively high cost of personal digital signatures, the percentage of bank customers using them remains low. — BIZHUB/VNS