In Directive No. 01 on the implementation of key tasks of the banking sector in 2023 issued by the State Bank, unlike 3 years ago, this agency no longer requires commercial banks not to pay dividends in cash. Instead, the State Bank only encourages banks to pay dividends in shares to increase charter capital, improve financial capacity and ability to provide credit to the economy, and stabilize market interest rates.

No longer being "squeezed" on dividend payments, many banks have planned to pay cash to shareholders this year. For example, Tien Phong Commercial Joint Stock Bank (TPBank - TPB) has just announced the results of collecting written opinions from shareholders on dividend payments in 2023. Accordingly, TPBank shareholders have approved the plan to pay a 25% cash dividend, equivalent to VND 2,500/share.

With nearly 1,582 billion shares in circulation, TPBank is estimated to spend about VND3,955 billion to pay dividends to shareholders. The source of payment will come from undistributed profits until 2021 and the expected payment date is the first quarter of 2023.

Before TPBank, the Board of Directors of Vietnam International Commercial Joint Stock Bank (VIB) also approved the plan to pay cash dividends in 2022. Specifically, the bank will pay cash dividends at a rate of 10%, equivalent to an advance payment of nearly VND 2,108 billion. The expected time for paying the advance dividend is March 3. VIB even announced that it could pay cash dividends of up to 35% of charter capital, meaning that each shareholder owning 1 VIB share can receive VND 3,500.

As for Asia Commercial Joint Stock Bank (ACB), the 2022 profit distribution plan was approved by the General Meeting of Shareholders with a plan to pay dividends in shares at a rate of 15% and 10% in cash (implemented in 2023 if approved by the State Bank.

Similarly, at the 2022 General Meeting of Shareholders, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Vietnam Prosperity Joint Stock Commercial Bank (VPBank - VPB) Ngo Chi Dung announced that the capital base achieved by the end of this year is sufficient to ensure high growth according to the plan in the next 5 years. The Board of Directors plans to submit to the General Meeting of Shareholders from 2023 to pay cash dividends of 30% of annual after-tax profits.

If approved, this will be the first time VPBank has paid cash dividends to all shareholders since its listing in 2017. Previously, the bank paid cash dividends for more than 73 million preferred shares in 2018 at a rate of 20%.