Vietnam International Bank (VIB), one of the leading banks in Vietnam, has recently been recognised by the Global Business Outlook for its innovation in creating unique value with its foreign currency services for individual customers.
VIB, which started its operations with an initial charter capital of VND50 billion and 23 staff, has achieved many significant milestones since its formation.
As of June 30, 2023, VIB’s charter has reached over VND 25,368 billion, while its shareholder’s equity reached VND 33.834 billion and total assets were recorded at VND 380.000 billion. The venture has now over 10,000 employees at its 179 branches, apart from possessing transaction offices in 28 provinces/cities across Vietnam.
Meeting Foreign Currency Demand With Competitive Exchange Rates
“VIB applies a maximum limit on foreign currency purchases equal to the per capita income at the current price level in the destination country, up to USD 70,000. The list of foreign currencies traded at the bank has been expanded to 16 popular currencies that are applicable in 50 countries around the world,” Vietnam International Bank informed the Global Business Outlook, while describing the particular service, which meets the customers’ needs like overseas study, travel, work, healthcare, resettlement, and allowances for relatives living abroad.
For overseas travel and business, VIB converts foreign currency into cash for its customers. For overseas study and healthcare, the bank will provide some foreign currency in the form of cash, with the remainder being transferred directly to the education unit or the place where the customer’s treatment records are received in the host country.
For those spending longer time abroad, transferring allowances to relatives, or trading with foreign partners, VIB will transfer money directly to the beneficiary’s account in the destination country.
VIB also updates the exchange rate at a competitive level, thereby placing it in the most beneficial group for all the offered foreign currencies.
Reimagining Foreign Currency Service For The Customers
VIB is known for deploying various forms of foreign currency transactions, be it in-branch to online or spot/forward transactions, with a quick and convenient process for users.
“With direct transactions at the counter, VIB has streamlined a set of documents to save time and ensure compliance with the provisions of the State Bank of Vietnam’s Circular 20. As a result, it only takes 15 minutes for customers to receive foreign currency in cash, or to complete the wire transfer to the beneficiary,” the venture told the Global Business Outlook.
VIB customers can also transfer money online at any time and from anywhere on their smartphones with the digital banking app MyVIB. After opening the app, all the customers need to do is select the ‘International Money Transfer’ feature to make transactions instantly with a list of 11 popular foreign currencies and 200 countries.
For ‘Spot Transactions’, the exchange rate gets specified on a deal date, for settlement in two working days from the deal date. While for the ‘Forward Transaction’, the settlement period ranges from three to 365 working days from the deal date.
The VIB customers can also make transactions up to an unlimited amount if the outward remittances are supported by invoices or documents, such as tuition fee notices, hospital bills, goods service charge notices, and others.
“For outward transfers without receipts or supporting documents, for example, living expenses for studying abroad and allowances for relatives, the annual transfer limit is equal to the average per capita income at the current rates in the destination country,” Vietnam International Bank added.
“For each money transfer purpose, MyVIB provides a dedicated set of documents for the account holder’s convenience prior to conducting the transaction. VIB will process the money transfer request within 24 working hours. MyVIB also helps customers easily track the status of the transaction process anytime, anywhere,” VIB noted.
The Road Ahead
Vietnam International Bank, in recent times, has applied cutting-edge technology to the design of its ‘International Money Transfer’ feature on MyVIB, thus providing outstanding convenience for customers. This has helped VIB to excel in the field of foreign currency services.
Rebranded as ‘MyVIB 2.0’, the app now enables its users to open an account and payment card in just three minutes, apart from being the first Mobile banking app in Vietnam to apply Augmented Reality and Virtual assistant voice bot in its financial solutions.
The app, which has hit over one million downloads on the Apple App Store and Google Play, is leaving a strong impression on its users with its modern and easy-to-operate interface.
“VIB is implementing a free international money transfer programme for customers when making transactions on MyVIB from now until September 30. Additionally, the first 30 customers to make transactions each month will be given VND1 million (USD 41.98) each,” Vietnam International Bank concluded.