Vietnam Insider - Page 1192 of 1528

VIB proposes cashless solutions in Vietnam

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On June 11, 2019, Ms Tran Thu Huong, Head of Retail Banking – Strategic Businesses cum Head of Strategy & Business Support Department of Vietnam International Bank (VIB), shared VIB’s experience regarding its initiatives to pivot to cashless transactions and emphasized benefits to consumers at a conference entitled “Cashless society: policies and realities in Vietnam.”

Ms Tran Thu Huong also underlined VIB’s support for governmental measures to encourage cashless transactions. Speaking on VIB’s own initiatives, Ms Huong asserted that VIB’s strategies of expanding credit card options and digital banking are in line with its goals of anticipating demand and becoming the leading bank in cashless transactions in Vietnam.

VIB’s strategies to anticipate cashless trends in Vietnam

According to Ms Huong, cashless transactions are growing around the world at approximately 13% a year; even faster in Asia, at 30%. Among cashless options, cards still dominate at 67%, followed by mobile payments and internet payments.

Anticipating this trend, VIB has focused on developing its digital payments options through cards and digital banking services, most notably the app MyVIB which allows users to conduct transactions, including interbank transactions and bill payments, immediately 24/7, even during the weekends and holidays. VIB has also developed technologies based on digital banking such as QR code payment and real times card management. This past May, VIB was the first bank in Vietnam to offer digital cards and Green PIN, which allow users to start transacting immediately after being approved, without having to wait for a physical card or a printed PIN code. These technologies shorten the waiting period to begin transacting from five days to 3-5 minutes.

At the same time, VIB is lowering initial barriers against cashless transactions by offering attractive deals, such as a program waiving all online transaction fees unconditionally, up to 50% discount and 0% interest on installments for VIB cardholders. In honor of Cashless Day, VIB is also offering exclusive privileges programs for card users and digital banking customers in June.

VIB Credit Card leads e-commerce transactions in Vietnam. Source: VIB

Furthermore, to encourage customers to use cashless methods over the long run, VIB is rolling out unique products with long-term practical benefits. Most notably, six new cards have been introduced and have received widespread acclaim: Happy Drive – the only credit card in the market offering up to 500 litres of gasoline per year and cashback 30 percent on car maintenance fee; VIB Financial Free – the 1st credit card with free annual fee and withdrawal up to 100% card limit. Or other credit cards with outstanding benefits such as VIB Cash Back, VIB Rewards Unlimited, VIB Travel Elite with the best refund, reward points, miles and currency exchange transaction fee. The most recent credit card, VIB Zero Interest Rate, waives interest rate for all card expenses during five years. rather than only the usual 45-60 days.
These initiatives have resulted in impressive growths in VIB card users and MyVIB transactions. VIB is one of the leading banks in MasterCard credit card spending with growth rate reaching over 300% compared to 2017, twice the market average. Over the same period, the number of digital transaction users has grown 60%, and the amount of transactions over MyVIB has grown 77%.

Suggestions to expand cashless transactions in Vietnam

At the conference, Ms Huong also suggested ways to accelerate the transition to cashless in Vietnam. According to Ms Huong, two most important factors are supply and demand. Supply comes from the government, which should utilize regulation and executive guidance to ease the way for banks and companies such as Fintech and Bigtech to participate in discussions and offer suggestions moving forward. With clearer regulations and guidance from managing offices, banks and businesses would be more empowered to take initiative. Demand, on the other hand, comes from consumers. Along with banks’ individual efforts to bring cashless options to consumers, the National Bank has been observing the rollout closely and encouraging banks to join in the effort to raise consumer awareness. High consumer awareness means consumers would be more receptive to new cashless solutions.

Efforts to stimulate supply and demand need to happen at the same time. The leadership of the government and the National Bank has had a large impact, pushing banks to develop strategies moving forward to expand cashless transactions in Vietnam.

EPIZODE will be making an epic return to Vietnam’s island of Phu Quoc

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After the huge success of its last edition, EPIZODE, one of the world’s most exciting music and art festivals, will be making an epic return to Vietnam’s island of Phu Quoc for its fourth edition from December 27 2019 to January 7 2020.

Once again set to capture the visitor’s imagination, the 11-day spectacle will present a non-stop programme of art, daytime activities and the grooviest electronic music, while connecting the West and the East by bringing the global music legends, together with the best regional talents. The first lineup reveal features international heavyweights such as ANJA SCHNEIDER, APOLLONIA, CRAIG RICHARDS, GUTI, LEHAR, LILLY PALMER, LOCO DICE, NICOLAS LUTZ, RICARDO VILLALOBOS, wAFF and WILLIAM DJOKO! They will be accompanied by the most thrilling international and regional artists, such as ABELLE, DOTT, MASHKOV, OUISSAM, SOFIA RODINA, SUNJU HARGUN and TYOMA. Keeping in line with previous editions, Epizode⁴ will be held at Sunset Sanato beach that will be expanded this year, giving festival-goers more to explore. The festival became the winter get together of ravers, travellers and industry people, solidifying it as the best place to start the New Year.

Epizode⁴ is a carefully curated 11-day cultural extravaganza that runs round the clock, and boasts an array of intricately decorated stages, art installations, iconic sunrise and sunset parties and engaging daytime activities. This special atmosphere unique to EPIZODE has gained wide-spread acclaim amongst critics and festival-goers alike. Phu Quoc itself is famous for its turquoise warm sea, white sand beaches, lush jungles and hypnotizing sunsets, as well as for its international airport and growing infrastructure. With these elements combined, Phu Quoc makes it a picture-perfect destination for a crowd hailing from 80 countries around the world, seeking a life-changing experience.

EPIZODE is a music and art festival held at Vietnam’s most picturesque island getaway, Phu Quoc

Techno lady ANJA SCHNEIDER, will be making her debut at Epizode while bringing her mesmerizing DJ set. After last year’s Boiler Room performance at Epizode, the French supergroup APOLLONIA will be back to enchant the crowd with their back2back2back spectacle. Epizode⁴ will welcome Fabric London’s legend CRAIG RICHARDS as well as the famous Argentinian performer GUTI, Diynamic artist LEHAR and up-and-coming Swiss star LILLY PALMER. Furthermore, Phu Quoc’s beach will be buzzing from the sound of Desolat head honcho LOCO DICE and DJ wizard NICOLAS LUTZ. Legendary RICARDO VILLALOBOS will bring his magic on the decks back for the third time, accompanied by the funky grooves of Cocoon star wAFF and the playful rhythms of WILLIAM DJOKO.

Leader of the iconic Russian art collective Arma17 and the hottest new club Mutabor – ABELLE, Moscow’s System 108 label founder MASHKOV and emerging techno princess SOFIA RODINA, will ignite euphoria with their acid-laced house and techno, while TYOMA, Epizode General Producer and Russia’s highly-acclaimed pioneer in electronic music, will keep the audience rolling with his signature sounds. Representing South East Asia will be OUISSAM, owner of Hanoi’s Savage Club and Berghain regular, while Thailand’s SUNJU HARGUN and DOTT will be flying the ASEAN flag.

As of June 13th, 11-day Multi Passes will be available at ~€259, as well as Sister Multi Passes which allow two ladies to enter for the price of one ticket, while three-person Group Multi Passes will cost ~€649. 3-day Multi Passes will cost ~€109 and 1-day Multi Passes, ~€59. Tickets can be purchased online via Epizode website: http://www.epizode.com

Who bought the shares of Sao Vang Rubber JSC?

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Four investors, including three individuals and an organisation, spent about VND195.5 billion ($8.5 million) to buy 4.2 million shares of Sao Vang Rubber JSC (SRC), subsidiary of Vietnamese chemical group Vinachem.

The Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HSX) on June 4 announced the results of the auction Sao Vang Rubber JSC shares held by Vinachem on the same day.

15 per cent of SRC capital owned by Vinachem was offered at the starting price of VND46,452 ($2.02) per share, equivalent to the divestment value of about VND195.5 billion ($8.5 million).

As a result, four investors, including an organisation and three individuals bought 4.2 million SRC shares at the price equal to the starting price.

Notably, SRC’s market price on June 4 was about VND25,000 ($1.09), but these four investors paid nearly twice this amount to get ther hands on Vinachem’s interest.

Information about the identity of the four investors has yet to be published, but according to the announcement of the HSX, none of them is a foreign investor.

Just before the auction, an individual investor, Nguyen Hoang Cuong who had deposited VND19.6 billion ($852,200) to register to buy all SRC shares offered by Vinachem had unexpectedly withdrawn his bid. Cuong said that after a careful study of the documents, he found that SRC was not as attractive as he previously thought and did not match his investment objectives. After he withdrew his bid, his deposit was refunded, according to Enternews.

In addition, before the auction, at the 2019 annual general shareholders’ meeting of SRC on April 27, a group of shareholders holding 19.02 per cent succeeded in securing two out of the five chairs on the Board of Directors (BOD) and one of the three chairs of the Supervisory Board (SB) at SRC.

In addition, the fact that the four investors all paid similar prices near the starting price, and bought up the entire volume registered to sell by Vinachem brings up the possibility that these four investors were working in tandem.

This group of shareholders is most likely related to Hung Thinh Phat Real Estate Investment Co., Ltd. (Hung Thinh Phat) and Hoanh Son Group JSC (Hoanh Son), which are implementing a high-end real estate project with SRC at 231 Nguyen Trai Street, Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi.

After selling 15 per cent, Vinachem reduces its ownership ratio in SRC from 51 to 36 per cent. According to the corporation’s restructuring scheme, the rest will soon be divested as well.

This is a chance for investors to put their hands on a share in SRC.

SRC’s potential is generally regarded positively because its core business is in the production of tires and tubes and it is a well-known national brand. Besides, the enterprise owns a large land fund, including a 6.2ha area in the centre of Hanoi.

In 2018, SRC achieved VND925 billion ($40.22 million) in revenue, VND12.2 billion ($530,500) in after tax profit.

Source: VIR

Province suffered Vietnam’s hottest-ever month on record in April

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With temperatures topping 43.4 degrees Celsius in April, Ha Tinh Province in north-central Vietnam just went through the country’s hottest month ever recorded as 2019 might be on course for being the sultriest year in Vietnam’s history.

Other areas of northern and central Vietnam also saw temperatures reach 37-40 degrees Celsius in April, with parts of Quang Binh Province recording a high of 43 degrees Celsius during the month, said Nguyen Van Huong, an official at the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting (NCHMF) in Hanoi.

Last month, Hanoi and the northern province of Lai Chau recorded their hottest May in nearly four decades, with mercury reaching 41.3 degrees and 40.9 degrees Celsius, respectively, according to NCHMF statistics.

“Since January, temperatures in most areas of our country have been 1-2 degrees higher than the average [of previous years],” Huong said.

However, it might be too early to call it Vietnam’s hottest year on record since it is only half way through 2019, he added.

“We will have to wait another six months to see whether 2019 is indeed the hottest year in our country’s history,” Huong said.

“Only then will there be sufficient statistical data to accurately answer this question,” he explained.

The current heatwave affecting northern Vietnam is expected to last until Thursday, as heavy rains and thunderstorms will start to cool down the region from Friday, the official said.

In central Vietnam, high temperatures will remain longer and only begin to drop from Saturday, Huong added.

Source: Tuoitrenews

African swine fever reaches Saigon

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Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam’s largest city, has declared its first African swine fever outbreak, meaning 55 out of 63 Vietnamese localities have been infected.
The incurable pig disease was detected at a farm in the outlying District 9, HCMC Department of Agriculture and Rural Development announced Tuesday.

Nguyen Phuoc Trung, the department’s director, said the farm’s owner fed the pigs with leftover food at restaurants, suggesting that could be a cause of the infection.

More than 160 pigs at this farm have been culled and the outbreak is under control, officials said.

District 9 borders Dong Nai, the country’s largest pig-farming province which was infected by African swine fever last month.

With HCMC hit by African swine fever, the total number of infected cities and provinces in Vietnam has now jumped to 55 out of 63, including the other four major cities, Hanoi, Hai Phong, Can Tho and Da Nang.

By Tuesday, Vietnam had culled 2.45 million infected pigs. African swine fever virus is shed in blood, saliva, tears, nasal secretions, urine, faeces, and secretions from the animal’s genital tract. Pigs can therefore become infected by contact with many different infected sources, mainly infected pigs, pork, and other pig-derived products like swill and fomites like bedding, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization.

African swine fever, which has no cure but does not affect humans, first came to Vietnam in early February and quickly spread across the northern and central regions before reaching the south in early May.

With the country estimated to lose VND3.6 trillion ($154 million) from the disease so far, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc had called for severe penalties for anyone trying to subvert efforts to contain it, saying that “fighting African swine fever is like fighting invaders.”

Vietnam has the seventh largest number of pigs in the world, 30 million, and is the sixth largest pork producer. Pig farming provides a livelihood to 2.4 million households, according to official figures.

Pork makes up 70 percent of the average Vietnamese diet. The Ministry of Industry and Trade is looking at frozen pork supplies as a fail-safe plan for a possible pork shortage. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has warned people not to continue raising pigs, and to raise other animal groups like buffalos, cows, poultry or seafood instead.

Latest data collected by June 6 from the World Organization for Animal Health shows 13 countries and territories are suffering from new or ongoing outbreaks of the disease: Belgium, Hungary, Latvia, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia, Ukraine, Mainland China, Hong Kong, North Korea, Vietnam and South Africa.

Source: Vnexpress

Vietnam Airlines makes emergency landing for ill patient

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A Vietnam Airlines flight from Japan to Danang made an emergency landing in Taiwan to rescue a Japanese passenger who had a high fever.

The Osaka-Danang flight had to take an emergency landing at Taoyuan International Airport on June 7 after a two-year-old child had a high fever and fainted 15 minutes into the flight.

After receiving the notification, the representative of Vietnam Airlines in Taiwan quickly called an ambulance and worked with the medical staff at the airport to prepare everything ready for the patient who had a seizure and breathing difficulties.

The child was transferred to Li Shin Hospital. After four hours, he recovered but fell sick again. Due to his unstable condition, the family decided to stay in Taiwan overnight. They safely returned to Osaka on June 8 and thanked Vietnam Airlines for all the help.

The plane was checked and refuelled and resumed its flight to Danang over one hour later.

In 2017, a plane from Hanoi to Busan had to make an emergency landing in Hong Kong after a passenger had a stroke. A plane from Hanoi to Paris landed urgently in New Delhi because of an ill passenger.

Emergency landings often cause a huge loss for the airlines due to sudden fuel cost, airport fees and compensations for other passengers.

Source: Dtinews

VinaCapital Ventures partners with Mirae Asset and Naver

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South Korean asset management firm and internet company form a $1bn joint fund with Vietnamese venture capital fund.

VinaCapital Ventures, the technology investment arm of VinaCapital, announced on June 10 the formation of a strategic partnership with Mirae Asset Global Investments and Naver Asia Growth Fund to create a $1 billion joint fund.

Speaking at the Vietnam Venture Summit in Hanoi, Mr. Tran Nhat Khanh, a Partner at VinaCapital Ventures, said that Mirae Asset, one of the world’s leading asset managers, with more than $375 billion in assets under management, would invest in VinaCapital Ventures. The terms were not disclosed. Meanwhile, Naver, which operates the most-used search engine in South Korea, will work with VinaCapital Ventures and its portfolio companies to help it grow and potentially expand beyond Vietnam.

“We are excited to collaborate with Mirae Asset and Naver not simply for the financial investment but for the opportunity to access experience and technologies that will help our investee companies reach their potential,” Mr. Khanh added. “Naver, which operates a variety of online businesses including the popular LINE messaging app, is well-positioned to help Vietnamese startups crack overseas markets such as South Korea, Japan, and beyond.”

“We are delighted to partner with VinaCapital, which is one of the pioneering venture capital investors in Vietnam,” said Mr. Lee Choonghwan, Head of Outbound Investment at Mirae Asset Capital, which is the General Partner of the fund. “We share their belief that the opportunities in this country are enormous, and we look forward to working with them and their investees to achieve even greater success.”

VinaCapital Ventures announced in March the appointment of Dr. Philipp Rösler, former German Vice Chancellor, as Chairman of its Advisory Board, as well as two new investments, in digital e-gifting platform UrBox and Wee Digital, a fintech making digital banking safer and more intuitive, for an undisclosed sum.

VinaCapital launched VinaCapital Ventures last year, a $100 million technology holding company and also started its first investments, in Logivan and FastGo, two tech-enabled startups providing solutions for Vietnam’s transportation and logistics markets.

Source: Vneconomictimes

Most Vietnamese adults to have bank accounts by 2030

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The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) must take action to ensure 90 percent of the Vietnamese population over the age of 15 have bank accounts by 2030.

This instruction was included in Decision No 681/QD-TTg on implementing sustained development targets for Viet Nam until 2030 issued by the Prime Minister last week.

The target for 2020 will be 70 per cent and more than 80 per cent by 2025.

Under the decision, the Government also set out plans to increase the number of ATMs per 100,000 people to 40 by 2020 and more than 40 by 2025.

The number of commercial bank branches per 100,000 people will be 20 by 2020, and more than 20 by 2025-30.

The decision also targets the strengthening of accessibility to banking services for enterprises, especially small- and medium-sized ones. As part of the roadmap, the number of SMEs with outstanding loans at credit institutions will be 200,000 by 2020, 250,000 by 2025 and 300,000 by 2030.

While fintech is sweeping through the traditional economy in Viet Nam like everywhere else in the world, the vast majority of residents do not have bank accounts.

Cashless transactions currently account for just 10 per cent of total payments in Viet Nam.

As the Government is stepping up measures to enhance cashless transactions in the country, Pham Thanh Duc, CEO of M-Service – the operator of e-wallet MoMo – expected in the next two to three years cashless payments would be the main factor significantly shifting the Vietnamese economy.

According to a plan on non-cash payments in Viet Nam in the 2016-20 period approved by the Prime Minister, by the end of 2020, the ratio of cash transactions will be reduced from 90 per cent in 2016 to below 10 per cent.

To boost cashless payments, Vietnamese banks are also proposing tax incentives for businesses adopting e-payments.

According to Dao Minh Tuan, deputy CEO of Vietcombank, most businesses were reluctant to purchase point-of-sale (POS) devices or establish e-payment services with the banks because there were currently no incentives to attract them.

Incentives, especially in taxes, would attract more businesses to cashless payments, which would increase payment transparency and reduce tax evasion, Tuan said.

According to a report on VNS

China and Vietnam crack down on illegal online gambling

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If citizens of China and Vietnam needed any reminder, online gambling is still illegal in those countries.

That reminder came on June 10, when Police in Anhui province swooped in and arrested 78 suspects for running an online gambling ring.

According to Xinhua, the investigation into the group began in October, when police were notified that a “victim” had lost 300,000 yuan ($43,000) in an online game called “Zork.” There is nothing in the report if that version of Zork has anything to do with the classic 1980’s text based adventure game.

The games allegedly stretched into the neighboring provinces of Jiangsu and Hubei, and amounted to an operation worth 128 million yuan ($18.5 million). They brought in new gamblers by using live streaming platforms to entice more to play.

Of the 78 arrested, 46 are still in detention while investigation continues.

Meanwhile, Gambling Insider also reports that 35 Chinese nationals have been deported from Vietnam for activities related to online gambling. They were nabbed when Da Nang police raided six rented properties in the area. The suspects, who were handed over to Chinese authorities at the Mong Cai border gate, consisted of 31 men and 4 women.

Online gambling is also illegal in Vietnam, a country which has only permitted gambling in specific casinos. This deportation of Chinese nationals comes not too long after Vietnam did its own crackdown on online gambling rings in May, when 30 were arrested or brought in for questioning from two online gambling rings in the Hung Yen and Hai Duong provinces.

These prohibitions on gambling in both countries might seem logical from a moral perspective to the central authorities of government, but they simply aren’t effective. It’s simply a fact that Chinese gamblers who have the means will travel to do so, and make up an important segment of the regional casino industry. Those with lesser means, who must turn to illegal online gambling rings for their enjoyment, are hardly victims of anything, but rather, willing participants who have to go underground to satisfy their cravings.

5 Restaurants In Vietnam That Will Make You Feel Relaxed

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Vietnamese food is now making its way in the international scene for its healthier take on different dishes. Vietnam is known for using less oil and meat and incorporating meals with a lot of vegetables.

Each meal in Vietnam is said to be influenced by different counties like India, China, France, and America. Hence, Vietnamese cuisine becomes an original fusion of food. Of course, it also has its traditional meals like Vietnamese Pho, Banh Mi Thit, and more. So if you want to try the authentic food in this country, here are five best restaurants you should visit that will give you the most relaxing ambiance.

Shri Restaurant & Lounge

Shi Restaurant & Lounge in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam will give you a wide panorama view with its ceiling-to-floor windows. Located atop the Center Tower, it will put you in awe with the scenery you can see while enjoying your meal.

Shi Restaurant & Lounge is the perfect place if you want to unwind or relax after a long day at work. In fact, its objective is to serve people with home-cooked European meals in a relaxed and ambient surrounding, per the Culture Trip. You can find this place at 72 Nguyễn Thị Minh Khai, 3 Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Skewers Restaurant

Skewers Restaurant is said to be the most favorite go-to restaurant of tourists in Ho Chi Minh City. From its name itself, it serves food on skewers like flame-bursting barbecue.

The chefs prepare guests’ meal in an open-air kitchen that not only guarantees your food is fresh but also gives everyone an amazing entertainment. Skewers Restaurant also offers the best cigar and whiskey in town that will surely make you feel relaxed with its candlelight and cozy atmosphere. You can visit this place at 9 Thái Văn Lung, Bến Nghé Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Cuc Gach Quan

Cuc Gach Quan is often a part of the 10 place people need to eat in Ho Chi Minch City. Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt even dined here when they were still together that made the place more popular.

Cuc Gach Quan will surely get everyone’s attention with its location in the old French colonial house and restoration that is made of recycled material. With its quirky design, antique interiors, plants, and a little pond in the middle, it is truly a must-visit place to relax and dine. The restaurant is located at 10 Đặng Tất, Thảo Điền Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Quan An Ngon

Quan An Ngon holds majestic beauty like it is derived from a fairytale, according to Vietnam Guide. The place serves every specialty known in Vietnam that makes it packed with foreigners and locals every day.

Here, you can try the classic Vietnamese meals like fresh spring rolls, Hue noodles, and black pepper crab. Quan An Ngon is near The Reunification Palace at 138 Nam Ky Khoi Nghia, District 1. You can surely relax while watching its lotus pond while staff in classic satin dresses serves your freshly-cooked food.

The Deck Saigon

The Deck Saigon will give a romantic and posh ambiance near the Saigon River with an open-air setting. It serves well-prepared pan-Asian fusion type dishes, and it has a variety of great lunch options.

At dinnertime, you can choose from its wide array of a la carte offerings like soft shell crab tempura, char-grilled shrimp, and rib eye steak. It mostly serves imported meat, so the price may not come cheap, but you can sure taste the best quality meat in town. You can dine here at 38 Nguyen U Di, District 2.

By Jonnalyn Cortez, This article was first posted on Business Times

New phone plant can make 125 million units a year for Vietnam’s VinGroup

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Vingroup JSC, Vietnam’s biggest listed firm by market value, said on Monday it has started work on a second smartphone factory with a capacity to produce 125 million units a year.

The new factory in the capital, Hanoi, will vastly increase Vingroup’s current capacity of five million units at its facility in the northern city of Haiphong, the conglomerate said in a statement. Reuters reports.

Construction is expected to be completed by early 2020 and the jump in capacity will help the company meet orders from Europe and the United States, Vingroup CEO Nguyen Viet Quang said in the statement.

“After a period of deploying and participating in the smartphone manufacturing industry, our products have been positively received by the market,” Quang said.
“We received many processing orders from major partners in Europe and the United States. That’s why we have invested in a factory with 25 times the capacity of our current factory in Haiphong, to meet with domestic and international demand,” he added.

A company spokesman declined to provide the names of the European and U.S. partners.

According to Reuters, Vingroup launched its smartphone brand, Vsmart, in December last year, seeking to win market share from popular brands Samsung and Apple in Vietnam, which has a population of 95 million people.

Vsmart phones use chips from Qualcomm and run Google’s Android operating system, and went on sale at a price of 3.39 million dong (US$145) to 6.59 million dong (US$282).

In March, the company began selling Vsmart phones in Spain and planned to expand into other European markets. Its phones went on sale in regional neighbour Myanmar last month.

It is part of a diversification strategy that has seen Vingroup, once focused on real estate and retail, become Vietnam’s first fully-fledged domestic carmaker in 2018.

Electronics is a vital part of Vietnam’s economy as firms such as Japan’s Sony Corp and South Korea’s LG Electronics and Samsung Electronics reorganise production in the face of slumping global demand.

Samsung said in December it will close one of its mobile phone plants in China as it focuses on low-cost countries like Vietnam, where it is the largest single foreign investor.

In April, LG Electronics said it would stop making smartphones in South Korea and move production to Vietnam.

South Korean chips-to-energy conglomerate SK Group said last month that it had agreed to buy 6.1per cent of Vingroup for US$1 billion as it expands its investments in Vietnam.

(US$1 = 23,354.0000 dong)

(Reporting by James Pearson; editing by Darren Schuettler)

Vietnam’s Vimo and mPOS to combine With Plans to Raise $30 Million

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Vietnam’s Vimo and mPOS to combine, rebranded as NextPay
NextPay plans to expand to Myanmar and Indonesia in 2020

Two of Vietnam’s payments startups are merging to add scale in the market where cashless payments are booming.

According to a report on Bloomberg, Vimo Technology JSC, a mobile wallet provider, and Vietnam mPOS Technology JSC, which develops portable point-of-sale technology, will be combined and rebranded as NextPay Holdings. Nguyen Huu Tuat, chief executive officer of mPOS, will become CEO of the combined entity. Nguyen Hoa Binh, who founded the two Hanoi-based startups, will be NextPay’s chairman.

NextPay is in talks with investors to raise about $30 million and anticipates closing the round soon, Tuat said. The capital will help the company as it plans an expansion into Myanmar and Indonesia in 2020.

“MPOS’s business model is quite similar to Square in the U.S., in that any merchant can accept payments easily, and Vimo is a mobile wallet similar to Alipay,’’ Tuat said. “By merging these two businesses, we provide a one-stop payment solution for merchants.’’

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc is trying to usher the country into the modern era of digital payments, reducing the amount of U.S. dollars in circulation and establishing the dominance of the Vietnamese dong. That means encouraging Vietnamese households to adopt credit cards, bank transfers and digital payments rather than carrying around piles of cash and bullion.

The merger is aimed at helping NextPay capitalize on the shift. The combined company will have a presence in 11 cities across Vietnam, with more than 35,000 acceptance points. Already, Vietnam has a young, tech-savvy population where 70% use smartphones.

North Ridge Partners Executive Director Michael Gethen and Chris Tran, the firm’s head of Asia, advised on the deal.

Vietnamese runner Quach Thi Lan bags double golds at Asian Grand Prix Series 2019

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Vietnamese star runner Quach Thi Lan has wrapped up the 2019 Asian Grand Prix Series with success, as she bagged two gold medals in the women’s 400m from the two-leg event in Chongqing, China.

After crossing the finish line to win gold in the first leg on Tuesday, Lan once again finished first in the second leg – the final round of the 2019 Asian Grand Prix Series – on Friday to finish with double golds in the 400m at the event.

Just like in the first round, the runner from Thanh Hoa province didn’t face any trouble in qualifying runs for the 400m event in the second round. During the final race, Lan had an advantageous starting phase and then maintained a safe distance from her strong opponents who were from host China, Sri Lankan and Kazakhstan to finish first in 52’29. The time she finished in was even faster than the previous gold Lan won in the first round (52’63).

It is quite unfortunate for Lan that the 400m hurdles event that brought her a gold medal at the 2019 Asian Athletics Championships in Qatar in April wasn’t included in this tournament in China.

Bui Thi Thu Thao wins the gold medal in long jump event.

Vietnam also won another gold medal in the women’s long jump thanks to Asian Games winner Bui Thi Thu Thao, despite only reaching 6.32m. It is considered a good achievement for the Hanoian athlete after a long time out of action as she underwent rehabilitation for an injury. Thao also secured a bronze in the same event in the first leg with a jump of 6.34m.

The Vietnamese athletes bagged three gold medals during the tournament. Vietnam sent 16 competitors to the event which is in fact a qualifying event for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Japan.

Model Ngoc Trinh facing a large fine over Cannes dress that ’caused public outrage in Vietnam’

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The model and fashion designer’s barely-there dress is so daring it could be illegal

Model Ngoc Trinh is reportedly facing a large fine from the Vietnamese government over the extremely revealing outfit she wore to the Cannes Film Festival.

Last week, 28-year-old Ngoc Trinh turned heads on the red carpet at the premiere for World War II epic A Hidden Life, clad in a semi-sheer thong body-suit. The Mirror reports.

The daring ensemble featured two mesh straps across the chest, double thigh splits and a shredded beaded train.

According to the Mirror, Ngoc Trinh’s headling-grabbing appearance at Palais Du Festival is said to have caused ‘public outrage’ in her home country with officials considering handing out a large fine to the model and designer.

Ngoc Trinh arrives at the screening of A Hidden Life (Image: WireImage)

Her sexy dress left very little to the imagination (Image: REUTERS)

The bodice featured a thong design (Image: Getty Images)

Nguyen Ngoc Thien, the country’s Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism said: “Her outfit was improper, offensive and has caused public outrage.”

While a spokesperson for the Ministry told VNExpress that the gown was ‘overdone and offensive’ and that it ‘goes against Vietnamese tradition and people should speak out against this uncultured behavior.’

The dress is said to have caused ‘public outrage’ (Image: AFP/Getty Images)

Ngoc Trinh is a well known fashion model and designer (Image: Tony Clifton / SplashNews.com)

Ngoc Trinh, who has won the title of Photogenic Supermodel Vietman and has been hailed ‘lingerie queen,’ is said to be unapologetic for her outfit.

She ‘s said to have told VNEexpress: “I’ve got a lot of praise for my outfit. I don’t care if people criticize it because I felt pretty in the dress, which made a good impression on the Cannes red carpet.

“I cannot satisfy the whole world,” she added.