HÀ NỘI — Deputy Prime Minister Hồ Đức Phớc has signed an official dispatch on July 30 to urge ministries, sectors and localities to intensify efforts to promote cashless payment.

The Deputy Prime Minister requested relevant authorities to swiftly implement measures to encourage non-cash transactions, enhance direction and guidance and conduct widespread communication campaigns to promote cashless payments. These efforts aim to meet the payment demand of citizens and businesses, prevent tax evasion and criminal activities, and ensure strict enforcement of law against violators.

The Ministry of Finance is tasked with coordinating with other ministries and sectors to strengthen inspections and oversight of State budget disbursement and ensure compliance with legal regulations on invoices and payment documentation for the sale and purchase of goods and services. Violations, particularly the deliberate use of cash to evade taxes, must be promptly and strictly penalised.

The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) will work with relevant agencies to quickly carry out tasks and solutions to further develop the cashless payment ecosystem. It is also assigned to conduct a comprehensive review of the implementation of the 2021–25 cashless payment development scheme and report the outcomes to the Prime Minister before December 1, 2025.

In addition, the SBV must step up inspection, supervision and anti-money laundering measures within the banking system. The continued development of payment infrastructure and financial technologies is also emphasised as essential to boosting cashless transactions nationwide.

According to an SBV report presented at a recent seminar on cashless payment in Việt Nam held in HCM City, the interbank electronic payment system currently processes an average of VNĐ820 trillion (US$31.25 billion) daily, handling about 26 million transactions.

Việt Nam has continuously upgraded its national credit information infrastructure, achieving an impressive 98 per cent data update success rate across credit institutions.

There are now over 204.5 million payment accounts and 154.1 million active bank cards in the country, with nearly 87 per cent of adults holding bank accounts.

A recent survey revealed that 59 per cent of daily transactions are cashless, rising to 72 per cent among those aged 25 to 44.

Việt Nam is also advancing cross-border retail payments via QR codes with neighbouring countries such as Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia, with plans to expand further to Asia. — VNS