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APT attack on Da Nang’s government webs uncovered

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The Vietnam Computer Emergency Response Team (VNCERT) uncovered several advanced persistent threat (APT) attacks on governmental websites in the central city of Da Nang in late July.

VNCERT found a malicious file exploiting a memory corruption issue in Microsoft Office in a document on the website of the People’s Committee of Hai Chau District, Da Nang. Hackers might aim to infect the computer system of the city’s administrative units with this malware, according to the team.

On August 1 VNCERT sent a letter to the municipal People’s Committee and Department of Information and Communications to warn about the attack and advise them how to deal with the issue.

“The main purpose of the hackers is to steal confidential information of Da Nang city,” the team said in the letter. “With such hi-tech attack, the city’s firewalls are not able to promptly detect the problem, allowing the hackers to maintain control of the computer system for a long time,” it added.

Analysis of the cyber-attack showed that the hackers have thoroughly monitored the targeted website and used hi-tech solutions to get around security walls. This would allow them to take control of the internal computer system and steal information.

In the letter, VNCERT also provided Da Nang with detailed instructions on how to examine and remove this type of malware. It urged the municipal Department of Information and Communications to act on this advice without delay.

The malware is extremely dangerous as it can steal information and destroy the data system, so the VNCERT recommended leaders of the Department of Information and Communications strictly follow the instructions.

First appearing at the end of 2010, APT attacks are one of the top threats to information security.

Statistics show that more than 27 percent of APT attacks have targeted government institutions, followed by those hitting banking and financial institutions and telecommunication firms with a large customer database.

Vietnam has seen a number of APT attacks on big organisations, most notable being the cyber-attack on the national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines in July last year.

VNCERT reported that last year, Vietnam was hit by 13,382 cyber-attacks, including 6,400 malware; 4,377 deface; and 2,605 phishing attacks. Some 5,179 cyber-attacks have been recorded since the beginning of 2018, consisting of 1,122 phishing; 3,200 deface; and 857 malware attacks.

According to a report on VNA

Vietnam reports three outbreaks of highly pathogenic bird flu

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Vietnam has reported three outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N6 bird flu among backyard birds, the Paris-based World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) said on Friday, citing a report from the Vietnamese farm ministry.

According to a report on Reuters, The first outbreak was detected on July 28 in a backyard flock of 2,400 birds in the province of Nghe An. It directly killed 90 birds.

On the same day, it was detected in the province of Hai Phong in a flock of 4,720 birds, where it killed 500 birds.

And on July 30 the virus was detected in another backyard in Hai Phong with 5,500 birds where it had killed 1,000 of them.

Birds that were not killed have been slaughtered, it said.

The types of birds were not indicated and the source of the disease not known.

(Reporting by Sybille de La Hamaide; Editing by Susan Fenton)

Say hello to ‘Made in Vietnam’ and Forget ‘Made in China’.

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Forget “Made in China”. There’s a new global buzzphrase: “Made in Vietnam”.

Indeed, the once war-torn nation is fast-positioning itself as a key manufacturing hub. One in 10 smartphones in the world – you may be reading this article from one – are produced in Vietnam.

Nguyen Ba Hoi produces neither smartphones nor steel for export. Instead, he’s focusing on developing his country into a centre for innovation

Karim Raslan reported on SCMP, in 2017, Samsung products alone accounted for a quarter of the country’s US$227 billion in exports, in which steel and furniture also strongly feature.

But the Vietnamese are also adding value in a surprising way, and this is especially apparent in Da Nang.

Nguyen Ba Hoi produces neither smartphones nor steel for export. Instead, he’s focusing on developing his country into a centre for innovation.

Students from the University of Da Nang test out various techniques and gadgets for their personal and academic projects. Photo: Mai Duong

He’s spending his time in Danang’s modern and sleek “Maker Spaces”, co-ops where creatives can invent and test out new products, that are quickly popping up all over the region.

“University students come here to learn about thermal equations or build a musical instrument in two hours. We’re also developing a device to help patients who have suffered a stroke – for now, it’s just a prototype.”

Married and a father of two, Hoi shows me around the Maker Innovation Space on the University of Danang’s campus, one of two facilities he has established since 2015. It’s filled with 3D printers, laser cutters and all sorts of modern gadgets tech junkies relish.

But he hasn’t always had it easy.

“Both my parents were primary schoolteachers and part-time farmers. They raised livestock like pigs … their income was super low.”

Hoi was born in the rural village of Binh Lan Ward in Vietnam’s central Quang Nam province, with a population of more than 1.4 million. The place seems humble even today; one-lane roads and single-storey shophouses surrounded by hills overlooking unending swathes of forests.

A near-empty road in the rural village of Binh Lan Ward in Vietnam’s central Quang Nam province. The place seems humble even today: one-lane roads and single-storey homes. Photo: Mai Duong

“I was born in a very poor area … I came here to Da Nang to study and worked really hard, so I could support my parents. I weighed 38kg and slept four hours a day to learn English … I wanted to go overseas to further my studies.”

After obtaining a degree in electrical and electronic engineering at the University of Da Nang, Hoi attended Thailand’s Asian Institute of Technology where he pursued a master’s in microelectronics. He then moved to Munich, where he helped develop a black box system for Mercedes-Benz.

Now an alumnus of Washington’s Catholic University of America with a PhD in biomedical engineering, the ambitious 39-year-old is happy to be back home.

“When I hear about the latest technology, it’s always someone from Germany or the UK who’s invented it. So why not someone from Vietnam this time? This is what places like Maker Space can do: give Vietnam’s young people a chance to make a name for themselves.”

Vietnam’s third-largest city of just over 1 million people, Da Nang is poised to play host to more entrepreneurial and technology-centric initiatives like Hoi’s, pushing to develop technology and innovation sectors domestically.

The country’s largest information technology company, FPT Corporation, is looking to transform the coastal metropolis into a “smart city” by 2020, investing US$658,000 on pilot projects such as real-time management of traffic signals and an electronic patient recording system in hospitals.

Innovation even permeates city management. As part of its push to become a “green city” by 2025, Da Nang has already eliminated 12,000 tonnes of carbon emissions by introducing hybrid cars and solar-powered water heaters.

A sign encourages university students at Maker Innovation Space in Da Nang. Photo: Mai Duong

While many of the region’s economies are slowing down – especially in light of the US-China trade war – Vietnam’s gross domestic product expanded 7.38 per cent in the first quarter of 2018.

Despite US President Donald Trump’s hostility to global trade, more than 60 American companies, from Microsoft to IBM, converged on Da Nang earlier this year to look for opportunities in the Central Key Economic Zone, comprised of seven provinces.

Yet, with only 9 per cent of the workforce holding university-level qualifications, Vietnam may face a barrier to expanding its industrial capability beyond manufacturing.

Hoi remains optimistic.

Sitting with his parents – who are now happily retired from farming – he quips, “I love this philosophy we have at Maker Space: when you come here, you can innovate and fail very fast. But then you try again and then you succeed. Before we succeed, we must fail a lot.”

On the wall of Maker Space is a sign that simply reads: “design the future”.

If Vietnam can upskill its workforce, cut red tape and create more Hoi’s – Vietnam’s future will no doubt be an inspiring and impactful one for both its people and the rest of the region.

Ship from T&T arrived in Vietnam with US$35M in cocaine

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Local police are teaming up with authorities in Vietnam after US$35m worth in cocaine was found aboard a ship which left this country about two months ago.

An online report from a Vietnamese newspaper said the cocaine was found in a shipping container among scrap metal. Customs officers at the Tan Cang Cai Mep-Thi Vai Port in the southern province of Ba Ria Vung Tau found a 17-container shipment suspicious and decided to carry out a thorough inspection on Tuesday, the report stated. Inside one of the containers, they found four large sacks containing 119 kilogrammes of a white powder among the scrap steel.

Tests found that the powder was high-quality cocaine, the report said.

According to logs, the Liberia-flagged cargo ship, Mark Shenzhen, which transported the scrap steel shipment, began its voyage from Trinidad and Tobago two months ago and docked in Panama for half a month before arriving in China on July 15.

The ship then berthed at the Tan Cang Cai Mep-Thi Vai Port, in Vietnam on Tuesday, where it unloaded the scrap steel containers before leaving for Singapore immediately afterwards. Authorities have identified the shipment’s owner as Singaporean company Stamcorp International Pte Ltd and its recipient as local firm Pomina Steel 2. The seal on the container, however, did not match documents provided by the shipment’s owner.

Vietnam police have said that this is the largest-ever drug haul in the province. Vietnam has some of the world’s toughest drug laws. Those convicted of possessing or smuggling more than 600 grammes of heroin or cocaine or more than 2.5 kilogrammes of methamphetamine could face the death penalty. The production or sale of 100 grammes of heroin or 300 grammes of other illegal narcotics is also punishable by death.

Child marriage remains common in Son La

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Hờ Thị Chư, a mother of two children at the age of 18, washes clothes at her cottage in the hillside in northern mountainous Sơn La Province’s Vân Hồ District. — VNA/VNS Photo Diệp Anh

According to VNS, ethnic minority girls from remote mountainous areas in Sơn La Province are pushing themselves for marriage, despite being underage, in the hope of a better life.

Children as young as 13 still believe tying the knot will help them get out of poverty even though getting married so young could lead to a precarious future.

Many marry when they are between 13 and 16 years old even though the Law on Marriage and Family sets the minimum legal age at 18 for women and 20 for men.

As a result, many have ended up carrying the burden of being child brides, including interrupting in schooling, early pregnancy and social isolation. They have found themselves stuck at home, unemployed and poor.

Married before adulthood

Hờ Thị Chư is among such cases. The H’Mông girl was married with a boy at the same village in Vân Hồ District’s Lóng Luông Commune when she was 15. At the age of 18, she is now mother of two children, three years old and six-months old.

Life of post-marriage of the girl is full of difficulties. Chư is living with her parents-in-law in a cottage in the hillside in Co Lóng Village. There is nothing valuable in the cottage. In rainy season, all six members of the family usually stay hungry as there are no jobs available for them at fields.

Chư told a Vietnam News Agency correnpondent that she and her husband were both under the legal age for marriage, so they could not register for marriage certificate.

This means both their children don’t have birth certificates or health insurance cards.

“When they get ill, I take them to a healer in the village to get medicine,” she said.

Giàng Thị Gánh, another girl in Vân Hồ District’s Vân Hồ Commune is luckier. She dropped out of school to get married when she was 17. Her husband, Sồng A Giống, has graduated from high school and earned a living thanks to the family’s tea garden. Gánh is now staying at home, doing household work and taking care of the children.

She said early marriage was a traditional custom of H’Mông people in her village, who believed the ideal ages of a girl to get married were between 13 and 14.

Gánh said she was afraid that the boy would fall in love with another girl if she hesitated to tie the knot with him. Although the school representatives came to persuade her to keep her studying, she insisted on quitting her education to start a family.

Gánh now regrets the decision and says she wanted to go back to school one day.

According to the provincial Department of Population and Family Planning, Sơn La was among the provinces with highest numbers of early marriage in the country. In 2017, as many as 1,500 child marriages took place, accounting for 18.7 per cent of total marriages of the province.

Of that, Vân Hồ District had the highest rate of child marriage, accounting for 27.3 per cent of total child marriages in the province.

Efforts achieved little

The number of early marriages is showing little signs of slowing down, while functional agencies admit their efforts to protect young girls from being child brides have not been successful.

Hà Thị Liên, official who is in charge of population and family planning issues from Vân Hồ District’s Health Preventive Centre, said early marriage was a traditional practice of ethnic minorities as they believed it would help their children stabilise their life and have more people to work.

The number has a tendency to increase due to the shortage of reproductive knowledge of young people, leading to unwanted pregnancy, she said.

Chairman of Vân Hồ Commune’s People’s Committee Ngô Văn Dự said the committee had worked with other neighbouring communes to strengthen education on reproductive healthcare and early marriage to young people in Vân Hồ, Lóng Luông communes in Sơn La Province and Pa Cò and Hang Kia communes in Hòa Bình Province.

The four communes had set up a general convention for local H’Mông people, in which they commit not to conduct child marriage for their children.

However, Dự said, the convention brought no effectiveness as many local people are not aware of the consequences.

Head of the provincial Department of Population and Family Planning Trần Đình Thuận, said early marriage posed a challenge on improving population quality and was a barrier for development in communities.

Thuận said after the project was approved, the province has implemented measures to improve the situation.

After three years of implementation, 12 schools have been built at 35 communes and the model of intervention on early and inter-family marriage has been carried out.

The province hopes to reduce the rate of early and inter-family marriage to 18.5 per cent by 2020.

Thuận said education needs to be boosted in the future. Local authorities need to co-operate with heads or elderly persons of each village to put a stop to backward customs in their communities.

He also suggested that those who were in charge of managing and curbing early marriages take more responsibility.

Fines for violators needed to be increased, he said, adding that the current fines were not strict enough. — VNS

Vietnam: Crypto Mining Firm CEO Allegedly Flees With $35 Mln in Investor, Company Funds

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More than 300 investors reported a suspected cryptocurrency scam to Vietnamese authorities on Tuesday after the head of a bitcoin mining startup disappeared along with $35 million in client money.

Le Minh Tam, director of Sky Mining, reportedly absconded to the U.S. a few days ago.

The case comes three months after Vietnam saw the biggest racket in cryptocurrency history, where investors said they were robbed of as much as $660 million in initial coin offerings, including Singapore’s iFan and Dubai’s Pincoin. No further developments in that case have been reported since April.

Mining and using cryptocurrencies remains illegal in Vietnam, according to the central bank, but investors here continue to be drawn by the promise of rich returns. Tens of thousands have reportedly lost money in scams or crashes in coin prices just this year.

In the new heist, Sky Mining investors said they were persuaded to invest in cryptocurrency mining machines — computers that perform the complex calculations needed to create new bitcoins — with a promised 300% annual return, plus extra interest for drawing in new buyers.

The operation was premised on the view that the price of bitcoin will reach $16,000 this year, up from about $7,700 now. Sky Mining promoted itself as the wholesale partner of Bitmain, China’s biggest bitcoin miner.

Around 5,000 individual investors across Vietnam, as well as foreigners including Nigerian and Japanese citizens, are reported to have joined the Sky Mining network, with the investments ranging from $500 to more than $20,000. Cryptocurrency mining remains illegal in Vietnam, according to the central bank.

Sky Mining registered in Ho Chi Minh City this January as an information technology dealer. Since March, the company has organized conferences and workshops to recruit investors in coin-mining farms, with the goal of spreading the network across Vietnam in 2019. The company website shows 18 active farms, as well as an office in Japan.

More than a week ago, Le Minh Tam posted a message on the site asking forgiveness from investors for an “unpredictable” drop in the bitcoin price that had undercut returns. He invited investors to come to the head office to collect their machines and a refund.

But one group of investors found the company’s mining facility and office empty when they went to pick up their mining machines last Friday. Le Minh Tam could not be reached. Sky Mining deputy director Le Minh Hieu said the chief had stolen all the money and fled to the U.S., a local newspaper reported.

The case was reported to the authorities after a 44-second video was posted Sunday on Facebook in which the vanished director said he had gone to the U.S. for medical treatment. He said that more than 100 agencies and individuals in Vietnam had collected the machines to keep them mining while he is away. “I am not hiding or running away, and will be back as soon as possible,” said the man in the video.

Investors, however, said Le Minh Tam was trying to buy time to escape from Vietnam with the money. Some lawyers described Sky Mining’s business model as a “Ponzi scheme.”

Cryptocurrencies arrived in Vietnam a few years ago when some services in Ho Chi Minh City began taking payment in bitcoin. Bitcoin ATMs have been installed in the country, allowing users to withdraw cash and buy the cryptocurrency.

FPT, Vietnam’s biggest IT company, also considered a pilot program to let students at its education arm pay their tuition in bitcoin. The central bank has told investors and cryptocurrency users to wait for the authorities to work out a legal framework for managing virtual currencies.

Meanwhile, similar coin-mining farms in Vietnam, including Eco mining and Asama mining, are still attracting investors with promises of high yields.

Vietnamese are among the most active users of cryptocurrencies, especially bitcoin, along with Japanese and South Koreans. Figures from SimilarWeb in 2017 showed that Vietnamese investors ranked at the top on cryptocurrency exchange Remitano, and second on CoinMarketCap.com and the Bittrex platform.

The race is on to hire qualified staff for blockchain-based industries

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Blockchain technology has become more popular and used in many industries, driving up demand for staff.

According to Vietnamnet, a report shows that blockchain technology in Vietnam is used in many important business fields, including financial services (83 percent), supply chain (40 percent) and public services (30 percent).

Some experts predict that Vietnam will become a ‘blockchain hub’ in the region in the time to come. Many banks, auditing firms and insurers are also planning to apply blockchain technology.

To implement the plans, the companies will need high numbers of qualified engineers. This has triggered a race to train and attract talent for blockchain-based industries.

According to TopDev, over 100 technology firms and 5,000 developers in Vietnam are developing technology products on the blockchain platform.

As it was very difficult to recruit Vietnamese IT engineers, foreign invested enterprises in the industry had to employ specialists from overseas, mostly from Russia, Ukraine and the US

In the second quarter of 2018, Navigos Search found many candidates for positions which offered VND100-300 million a month, mostly in the fields of finance & banking, production, tourism & hotels.

Both Vietnamese and foreign candidates were wanted. Employers offered a salary of VND100-200 million for marketing directors.

As it was very difficult to recruit Vietnamese IT engineers, foreign invested enterprises in the industry had to employ specialists from overseas, mostly from Russia, Ukraine and the US, though the offered pay was nearly the same for Vietnamese and foreign candidates ($2,000-3,000).

Many international firms, big and small, want to make heavy investment in Vietnam’s blockchain market. At least 99 percent of the staff in Vietnamese blockchain technology firms are from the domestic IT sector.

Analysts have warned of the lack of qualified blockchain engineers if Vietnam cannot prepare for human resources development.

The worker demand in the second quarter of 2018 continued to increase significantly in the blockchain-related sectors and other IT sectors.

By the end of the second quarter, the number of IT jobs had increased by 74 percent compared with 2012, and 24 percent compared with the same period last year.

It is expected that Vietnam will need 350,000 IT workers by 2021. At present, only 200,000 can satisfy the requirements.

The northern market has seen recruitment demand rising sharply for IT engineers for the finance & banking sector and fintechs.

The enterprises in the fields want to build up internal staff to develop products in the digital technology race.

Human resources developers all complain that it is difficult to find suitable candidates for managerial positions because of the requirements in meeting international standards.

Many candidates have good management skills, but they are not fluent in English. This continues to be a weak point of Vietnamese mid-level officers.

Hanoi takes disease prevention measures in flooded areas

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Hanoi Health Department is carrying out urgent measures to prevent the spread of disease in Chuong My District after days of flooding.

As of August 2, many communes in Chuong My District were still under water, meaning sewage water is now contaminating the area – Dtinews reported.

56-year-old Nguyen Thi Duyen had to place a large wood plank at the door to block rubbish from being washed into the house. Duyen said the communal authorities gave them a bottle of medicine for the itching caused by exposure to the contaminated water but it ran out fast and ants swamped her houses, making her unable to sleep.

Nguyen Thi Sau, another local in Nam Hai Village, said, “Our lives have been turned upside down after 10 days of flooding. This year the water has receded so slowly, everyone in my family has athlete’s foot but diarrhoea is the worse. We lack clean water and vegetables.”

The residents of Nam Phuong Tien Commune are also having to live with rubbish. The local authorities have started collections, but have proved unable to completely deal with such a huge amount of rubbish left after days of flooding.

Officials from Hanoi Department of Health visit a family in Chuong My District

Duong Viet Tai, head of Chuong My Medical Centre, said as of July 31, up to 3,627 houses in 11 low-lying communes were completely submerged. Nam Phuong Tien and Tan Tien communes were the hardest hit.

Tai went on to say that they had worked with Chuong My General Hospital and other medical stations to give health checks to 1,544 people. They also set up a disease prevention mobile team and were co-operating with communal authorities to clean up the environment.

Nguyen Khac Hien, director of Hanoi Department of Health, has recently arrived at the scene and asked the authorities to prepare medicines and equipment to prevent outbreaks.

Vietnam retail sales rises in 7 months straight

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Vietnam retail sales and services rose 11.1 per cent in the first seven months, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

The revenue reached VND2.49 quadrillion (US$108.3 billion) thanks to a strong increase in purchasing power during prolonged hot weather, the GSO said.

Sales in July reached the highest level during the past three months, with May and June each seeing 8.3 per cent growth.

The retail sector gained a year-on-year surge of 11.7 per cent in revenue to VND1.88 quadrillion, accounting for 75 per cent of the total revenue from retail sales and services.

Products recording strong increases included food (up 12.6 per cent), apparel (up 12.4 per cent), home appliances (up 12.3 per cent), cultural and education services (up 10.3 per cent) and transport (up 10.4 per cent).

GSO said demand for food rose during the FIFA World Cup in June and July.

Tourism revenue grew 17.7 per cent, followed by accommodation and restaurant and catering services, up 9.1 per cent.

The GSO expects Vietnam retail sales to grow by 10.5 per cent over the full year.

Vietnam divests holding in Saigon Jewelry next year

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Vietnam’s government is planning to undertake the equitisation exercise for Saigon Jewelry Company Limited (SJC), the sole gold and silver jewelry enterprise wholly-owned by the state next year, according to an official announcement.

Specific details of the equitization process, however, have not been disclosed. Quynh Nguyen reported on Deal Street Asia.

Established in 1988, SJC is one of the largest jewelry trading companies in Vietnam along with companies like Phu Nhuan Jewellery Joint Stock Company (PNJ), Bao Tin Minh Chau and Phu Quy Jewelry. It operates as a multi-business group whose interests span real estate, financial investment and services as well.

The state-owned jewelry firm, which currently operates 200 jewelry stores across the country, posted revenue of VND22.9 trillion ($981.3 million) and after-tax profit of VND81 billion ($3.4 million) last year.

Vietnam’s jewelry market, which is said to have a size of about $600 million, has attracted many investors including Vietnam-dedicated private equity firm Mekong Capital.

After fully divesting capital from PNJ by the end of 2016, Mekong Capital invested $7.6 million in Ben Thanh Jewelry (BTJ) through Mekong Enterprise Fund III, which has closed three other deals in restaurant operator Wrap & Roll, ABA Logistics and pawn shop F88, since its launch.

The new fund infusion helps Ben Thanh Jewelry build on its existing retail brand to launch a new fine jewelry retail chain in Vietnam called PRECITA, Mekong Capital said in a statement.

In addition to SJC, the state is looking to embark on the equitisation process for seven other companies in 2019.

Vietnam earned over VND28 trillion ($1.19 billion) from IPOs and divestment at state-owned enterprises in the past six months.

Of these, 90 per cent of the value and volume of shares offered came from six big deals, including three PetroVietnam subsidiaries — Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical (BSR), PetroVietnam Oil Corporation (PV Oil) and PetroVietnam Power Corporation (PV Power). The other three big IPOs were those of Hanoi Trading Corporation (Hapro), Vietnam Rubber Group (VRG) and Vietnam Southern Food Corporation Limited (Vinafood 2).

Despite positive results in the first six months of the year, the state-owned equitization process is still slow compared with the government’s target of privatising 85 SOEs in 2018.

VIB to repurchase bad debts from VAMC

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After a period of actively selling non-performing loans to the Vietnam Asset Management Company (VAMC), Vietnam International Bank (VIB) and local banks are buying back the debts from the VAMC to self-handle.

The State Bank of Vietnam and the VAMC have just approved and recognized VIB as one of banks buying VAMC bonds before schedule, including Vietcombank, Techcombank and Military Bank of Vietnam.

Previously, VIB has released financial report of 1H 2018 which was reviewed by Ernst & Young, with profit of VND1,151 billion, grown 3 fold YOY and 57% of the year plan. Net sales reached VND2,700 billion, increased 56% YOY. Lendig reached VND91,700 billion, up 8.9% of which retail banking increased 25% comparing to the beginning of the year and over 74% YOY. CAR was maintainded at 12.5%. The cost-to-income ratio (CIR) at 49%.

Since 2015, VIB has reached lending growth of over 25%, of which retail banking accounted for more than 70% of total lending as well as there was no bad debts at VAMC, VIB has become one of the market leaders in retail banking business, with highest rate in both scale and quality among joint stock commercial banks and contributes high proportion of revenue growth and profit. The bank expected that 2018 profit before tax would be over VND 2,500 billion, by 70% YOY.

VIB is also one of the top of digital banks with MyVIB mobile banking application, that developed under the co-ordinated design of digital banking experts from Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) as the largest bank of Australia. MyVIB has received many prestigious international awards from 2016 to 2017

Currently, VIB has a total assets of VND127 trillion, in which equity is VND9,660 billion with a network of 162 branches in 27 key cities. VIB has serving 2 million individual customers and tens of thousands of corporate customers. VIB has a strategic shareholder which is Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) as one of the 15 largest capitalization banks in the world.

Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica: Ho Chi Minh City’s Iconic Cathedral

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There are few tourist attractions as iconic as the Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica in Ho Chi Minh City. The church hosts a flock of new tourists every day who come to marvel at its colonial grandeur, while locals busily set up makeshift stations to sell local crafts and treats to passersby. Here is a quick guide from Katie Kalmusky (Culture Trip’s contributor) to one of the city’s most popular tourist attractions.

The history of the Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica

Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica was constructed from 1863-1880 during the French colonial occupation of Vietnam. The cathedral displays distinct neo-Romanesque features, such as the two giant bell towers (holding six bronze bells), ornate stained glass windows, and a red brick facade that fascinated locals during its construction. The bricks were imported from Marseilles and were incredibly unique during that time period. It was conferred a Basilica by the Vatican in 1959 and still serves as a religious institution to Catholics in Ho Chi Minh City.

High, domed ceilings and columns inside Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica | © Andrew and Annemarie / Flickr

The stunning interior features high, domed ceilings framed with dark brown arches that crisscross over the ceiling and extend down to column the hallway. Elegant white trim adorns the columns while curved stained glass windows filter sunlight onto central portraits of Jesus Christ at the altar. Its beauty is magnified by the required silence inside the Basilica and truly takes your breath away.

Our Lady of Peace

Outside the church stands a majestic four-meter-tall statue of the Virgin Mary that was added in 1959. The statue was the site of a “miracle” in 2005 after visitors claimed to have witnessed the statue shedding a single tear. Thousands of local Vietnamese Catholics and tourists swarmed the statue, prompting police intervention to maintain order as well as direct traffic to avoid the severe jams caused by the hordes of visitors. The Catholic Church of Vietnam ultimately refuted the miracle, but dozens of tourists and locals still visit the statue in the hopes of witnessing another “miracle.”

Massive renovation

The Basilica is currently undergoing a massive renovation project that began in August 2017 and is expected to last until June 2020. The costly endeavor is being funded by philanthropists and church-goers and it includes a new tile roof, a reinforced foundation, repairing the bell system, replacing broken sheets of stained glass, replacing damaged bricks, and other general maintenance. The Basilica is closed to tourists during this time but remains a site of worship for Vietnamese Catholics every Sunday where a mass is held at 9:30 a.m. in both Vietnamese and English.

Aerial view of Saigon Notre-Dame Cathedral | © Saigoneer/Shutterstock

It will be a few more years before the Basilica is ready to be the subject of your photo lens, but when it’s ready it will be more beautiful than ever. In the meantime, tourists are still welcome to visit the Basilica’s grounds in the heart of District 1 and is just across the street from the Saigon Central Post Office.

No plan to abolish high school graduation exam: minister

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The education ministry will not terminate the high school graduation exam in the next few years.

That was the message from minister Phung Xuan Nha yesterday after one of the biggest cheating scandals in recent years. Vietnamnet reported

Reporting to the Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on the second day of the monthly cabinet meeting, Nha took his responsibility over what happened in Son La and Ha Giang provinces this year, saying that the ministry would be tough on any violations discovered.

An investigation carried out after mounting public pressure last month discovered that the scores of 330 tests of 114 students in Ha Giang were raised higher than the real results.

It also found evidence of outside interference into the scores of several multiple-choice tests in Son La. Five local education officials were arrested so far.

But the minister said: “We can’t deny the whole exam because of those wrongdoings.”

Since 2015, Vietnam started merging the high school exit and university entry exams into one, hoping to make test time less stressful for the students.

It was also implemented to ease financial pressures when most of the students had had to travel to big cities like Hanoi and HCM City where the majority of the universities are based, Nha said.

Before the merging decision, there had been different ideas on how to reform the examinations, he said.

Some suggested discarding the high school exam but keeping the university entry one, which was infeasible as it would be against the Law on Education and might even drag down the educational quality bar as the students could graduate without any tests.

Others raised the idea of letting localities in charge of the high school exams, but that was dismissed due to concerns over possible unfairness among localities which tended to run after records and achievements and only a few universities could afford to organise their own exams, Nha said.

The high school graduation-cum-university entrance exam, or commonly called the two-in-one exam, was the best option, he said.

Regarding the “very severe wrongdoings” in Ha Giang and Son La, the minister said the Ministry of Education and Training conducted thorough reviews on the examination procedures and found shortcomings in the system. They included security faults in the multiple-choice test scoring software and the lack of inspection and monitoring from the ministry over the exams in the localities.

Nha promised technical improvements to the faulty software while the ministry was considering new ways to score the students’ tests in order to ensure transparency and fairness. The ministry would also clearly regulate the responsibilities of the localities, the universities and the examiners in the examination.

He added that because of the same reasons, the high school graduation exam should not be abandoned.

“We will consider thoroughly but the ministry is of the opinion that removing the national high school exam in the next few years is infeasible. Instead, we will try to make the exam more honest and accurately portray the educational quality of each locality,” Nha said.

Co-working draws foreign operators

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Driven by Vietnam’s large millennial population, co-working spaces are on the rise in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, and local operators are now being joined by major international players.

The world’s largest co-working space operator WeWork, valued at $20 billion, will likely make competition in the local market grow fiercer if it decides to launch its own co-working spaces in Vietnam.

According to the latest report by real estate services provider Savills Vietnam, 43 co-working spaces have been opened in Hanoi and 15 in Ho Chi Minh City since early 2014. The growing market includes local names like Toong, Up, and Hatch as well as foreign operators like Regus (UK), Hive (Hong Kong), CEO Suite (South Korea), and Kloud (Singapore).

To serve millennial professionals, most co-working spaces are concentrated in the city centre, namely the four inner districts of Hanoi and the central districts 1, 2, 3, and 4 plus Binh Thanh and Phu Nhuan districts in Ho Chi Minh City, all of which boast a high density of firms, commercial space, and entertainment areas.

Will WeWork devour the market?

Prior to eyeing Vietnam, WeWork expanded in Asia through mergers and acquisitions (M&A) deals. Last year, the US firm acquired a Singapore-based counterpart Spacemob, which followed a very similar model to WeWork’s, without disclosing the terms of the deal. With Spacemob, WeWork was able to enter Singapore, widely seen as Asia’s most innovative country, as well as Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s most populous country.

In April the giant announced a $400 million deal to buy Naked Hub, one of its main competitors in China, to enter the most populous market in the world.

Naked Hub is an offshoot of China-based luxury resort company Naked Group that was started in 2015 by Grant Horsfield and Delphine Yip-Horsfield. The company is primarily anchored in China, with most of its locations in Beijing and Shanghai, but it has expanded into Australia, Hong Kong and Vietnam. All told, it claims to have 10,000 members across its 24 office locations.

According to the company’s website, five Naked Hub locations are slated to be opened in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi in 2018. As of now, Naked Hub in E-Town in Ho Chi Minh City and Naked Hub in Indochina Plaza in Hanoi are among the most crowded locations in the community.

A WeWork insider declined to tell VIR about the giant’s detailed plans for Vietnam, but did say that the company would not go the way of M&A in the country.

Exciting market that creates no fear Do Hoai Nam, co-founder of domestic operator Up, told VIR that ASEAN-based Grab acquiring global giant Uber’s operations in the regional market shows the key role the “local element” can play.

Up tends to attract relatively new startup companies, so it chooses locations that are home to young startups. Up has co-operated with Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology to create a common working space and nursery business startup with legal support services and personnel.

Bui Trung Kien, deputy director of Commercial Leasing of Savills Hanoi, said that every co-working space is different in its business model and its target customers. He explained there are units geared towards young entrepreneurs, startups, and freelancers, while some are aimed at small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) or foreign corporations looking to rent office space in Vietnam, adding that the co-working market in Vietnam is competitive and developing in a healthy way.

According to Kien, the entry of a giant like WeWork would certainly have an impact on the co-working market in Vietnam. However, he added each that firm has its own competitive advantages and the presence of international firms would make the market more dynamic and professional.

Taking a lesson from the giant, local co-working spaces, which mostly serve startups and freelancers, could make their business models more flexible and attract potential corporate clients.

Nguyen Hoai An, director of Consultancy Services at CBRE Vietnam, told VIR that as millennials account for 91 per cent of clients in local co-working spaces, much higher than the global average of 67 per cent, more firms are bound to join the market to meet the demand.

Local operators welcome diversity
To date, well-known local operator Toong, founded in 2015, is the only domestic operator to receive strategic investment from foreign investors–Openasia Group and Indochina Capital–and form strategic partnerships with other companies such as CapitaLand, United Overseas Bank, International Enterprise Singapore, and Vanguard Hotels.

Speaking on the possibility of the US giant coming to Vietnam, a Toong representative said the company was “happy to welcome foreign operators”, adding that the market is big enough for many more players.

Toong, which is not only developing more spaces in Vietnam, but is also expanding to Cambodia and Laos this year, said that, “The more operators in the market, the more choices customers have.“

Toong’s representative asserted the company’s belief that successful firms are the ones which hold a clear vision and work hard to offer great value to their target customers. He also told VIR that the company believes its target customers are different from WeWork’s.

As the latest comer to the market last month, CoGo co-working space is positioning itself as a world-class investment unit, with an average of 2,500 square metres to each of its locations, which are focused on Grade A and B office buildings. Most of the SMEs it calls clients operate in a stable manner, so the style of office design is more professional rather than reminiscent of a cafe.

Kien of Savills Hanoi said that thanks to the scale advantage, rent will be one of the strengths of CoGo, since its prices range 20-30 per cent below the average. Kien also expects that the participation of more and more companies will get more businesses to move away from traditional offices and use co-working spaces.

Kien added that the co-working market in Vietnam accounts for about 3 per cent of the total office rental market, which is still lower than the ratio of 5 per cent seen in other regional markets. It is expected to reach 10-15 per cent over the next five years.

[Minh Huong] report on VIR

More than 1,000 people to clean Quy Nhon beaches

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More than 1,000 people are expected to join a campaign to clean Quy Nhon City beaches in Binh Dinh Province.
The campaign, sponsored by real estate developer TMS Group and the Youth Union in Binh Dinh Province, will take place on the morning of August 4.

The event is hoped to attract roughly 1,000 people from the TMS Group, youth union, local people and visitors.

The volunteers will collect rubbish on local beaches, arrange mobile dustbins and install slogans about environmental protection along the beach at Ghenh Rang Ward, Nhon Ly Commune, Quy Nhon City.

Roadshows about environmental marine protection, a photo contest and music shows will be organised as part of the activities.

Source: Dtinews