Vietnam Prosperity Joint Stock Commercial Bank (VPBank) held its annual general meeting of shareholders with many key contents - Photo: VGP/HT

On the afternoon of April 28, in Hanoi, Vietnam Prosperity Joint Stock Commercial Bank (VPBank) held its annual General Meeting of Shareholders (AGM) with many key contents.

Credit growth surpasses industry, controlling real estate bad debt

According to General Director Nguyen Duc Vinh, by the end of the first quarter of 2025, VPBank's credit balance growth reached 5.4%, higher than the industry average of only about 3%. If including the outstanding balance supported by the Vietnam Asset Management Company (VAMC), the growth rate reached nearly 8%, reflecting efforts to maintain growth in parallel with risk control.

However, consolidated profit in the first quarter of 2025 only reached about VND4,900 billion, a slight decrease compared to the same period last year. However, the bank still completed about 20% of the annual profit plan, showing its ability to flexibly regulate business activities.

Notably, the bank expects to complete about 40-45% of its 2025 profit plan in the first 6 months of the year, equivalent to VND6,000-7,000 billion. According to Mr. Vinh, if things go well, financial activities will make a strong breakthrough in the second half of the year, when credit and consumption increase.

Regarding bad debt, VPBank identified this as a major challenge in the first 6 months of the year, especially since real estate debts have expired their restructuring period since 2024. Major projects have improved about 30% of their legal documents, and the bank expects to continue to handle the remaining in the coming time. Although the real estate bad debt ratio tends to increase in the first and second quarters, VPBank believes it will stabilize from the second half of the year, thereby maintaining a secure financial foundation.

In the coming time, VPBank will continue to prioritize lending to residential real estate to meet the actual needs of the market. At the same time, the bank will pay special attention to choosing reputable investors, avoiding resort projects or high-risk real estate.

Delegates attending VPBank's General Meeting of Shareholders - Photo: VGP/HT

Expanding digital strategy

Regarding FE Credit finance company, outstanding credit balance as of the end of the first quarter of 2025 reached about VND 62,000 billion, up nearly 30% over the same period. At the same time, VPBank continues to promote debt collection and control the credit portfolio to ensure sustainable recovery.

FE Credit's 2025 target is to achieve a profit of about VND1,200 billion. In particular, if internal issues are handled well, the company can return to the profit level of VND3,000-4,000 billion as in the previous period. In addition, FE Credit focuses on perfecting the operating system, strengthening control of new credit quality, and gradually reducing the size of the old risk portfolio.

Regarding the digital asset segment, VPBank said it is cautiously approaching this new trend while waiting for specific guidance from the regulatory agency. The bank will proactively research digital financial products while ensuring a balance between risks and development opportunities.

Dividend policy harmonizes development goals and expands the financial ecosystem

Chairman of the Board of Directors Ngo Chi Dung shared that the 2024 cash dividend payment of 5% is a harmonious balance between the short-term needs of shareholders and the long-term goals of the bank. Although the cash dividend payment has a certain impact on equity, this is a commitment that has been maintained continuously for the past three years.

At the same time, VPBank confirmed that it has not implemented a plan to buy treasury stocks in the current period, in order to focus resources on expanding credit and increasing scale according to the GPBank restructuring project.

The approval to expand the foreign ownership limit to a maximum of 49% also creates attractive space for international investors, thereby providing additional capital for the bank's scale development strategy.

Continuing to move towards the model of a multi-functional financial group, VPBank has submitted to the General Meeting of Shareholders for approval a plan to establish a life insurance company with a charter capital of VND2,000 billion. The new company will operate in the fields of life, health and general insurance.

According to Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors Bui Hai Quan, the establishment of a life insurance company will help VPBank proactively control products, business processes and customer care, instead of simply depending on distribution partners as before. In addition, the bank is also implementing a plan to establish a fund management company, aiming to complete a comprehensive financial ecosystem.

Along with that, the digital banking model Cake by VPBank continues to grow strongly. To date, Cake has mobilized nearly 11,000 billion VND, serving about 5 million customers, operating leanly with just over 100 employees. This is considered a "sandbox" model to test digital strategies, creating widespread value for the entire system.

VPBank leaders aim to maintain a high growth rate in the 2026-2029 period, with outstanding credit and capital mobilization growing 27-28% per year, and profits growing an average of 30-35% per year - Photo: VGP/HT

2026-2029 period: Profit growth 30-35% per year

Reporting to shareholders, General Director Nguyen Duc Vinh emphasized four strategic focuses for 2025: synchronous growth of segments, asset quality control, ecosystem expansion and operating cost reduction. Specifically, VPBank targets credit growth of about 25%, capital mobilization to increase by more than 30%, revenue to increase by more than 20% and pre-tax profit to reach VND25,270 billion, the highest level in the bank's history. At the same time, the bank focuses on promoting CASA (non-term deposits), with the expectation of increasing by more than VND100,000 billion in 2025. This will be an important driving force to improve capital mobilization efficiency and protect net interest margin (NIM).

In addition, the bank also builds a financial group model towards centralizing operations, aiming to reduce costs by 15-20% and optimize internal resources.

Looking further, VPBank aims to maintain a high growth rate in the 2026-2029 period, with outstanding credit and capital mobilization growing 27-28% per year, and profits growing an average of 30-35% per year.

According to the management, the reason for setting such ambitious goals is thanks to the solid foundation built in 2024-2025, including modernizing the technology system, perfecting the organizational structure and strictly controlling credit risks. From 2025 onwards, VPBank identifies growth in scale, asset quality and operational efficiency as the three main pillars for the bank to rise to the group of largest banks in Vietnam, while strongly expanding its international presence.

At the end of the Congress, all proposals were approved by shareholders with a high rate of support, marking a favorable start for VPBank's new breakthrough journey.

Regarding the GPBank restructuring project, Chairman Ngo Chi Dung said that VPBank has carefully prepared all aspects, from human resources to business strategy. In particular, with advice from McKinsey, the bank is gradually rebuilding GPBank according to a modern model. Although there are only 8 months left for the 2025 fiscal year, VPBank expects GPBank not only to not lose money but also to achieve a minimum profit of VND500 billion in the first year of restructuring. This reflects the great initiative and determination of the leadership.

Mr. Minh

Source: https://baochinhphu.vn/vpbank-dat-muc-tieu-mo-rong-he-sinh-thai-tai-chinh-loi-nhuan-ben-vung-10225042819511043.htm