Chairman of the HCM City People’s Committee Phan Văn Mãi (seventh from left) and other city officials at a meeting with representatives of the Bank of America during the delegation’s visit to the US during July 18-25. VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — HCM City will create the most favourable conditions for US businesses to invest in the city’s many fields such as finance, technology, infrastructure, education, healthcare and others, a top city official said.

The remark was made during a meeting between the chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Phan Văn Mãi and a number of US firms as part of the city delegation’s visit to the US during July 18-25.

During the trip, HCM City called on investment funds and investors from the US to invest in the city and sought support to build an international financial centre with diverse financial services.

At a meeting with the Bank of America, the US’s second largest bank founded in 1904, Mãi said he was committed to assisting the bank to set up a branch in the city.

It would also ceaselessly work to build a liveable, friendly and safe city for its people and the international community, he added.

Madhu Kannan, executive vice chair of global corporate and investment banking at the bank, said the Vietnamese market was growing steadily with its advantages such as abundant human resources, favourable policies and friendly investment climate.

The bank is seeking permission to set up a $50 million branch in HCM City, Kannan said, adding he hoped to receive support for the bank’s return to Việt Nam after closing its Hà Nội office in 2002.

At another meeting with the KKR investment firm, Mãi called on the firm to invest in three major projects, including a metro system, a railway network connecting localities in the HCM City region, and a railway linking HCM City with the Mekong Delta city of Cần Thơ.

Those projects are critical to the development of not only HCM City but also the entire southern region, according to Mãi.

The delegation also met with McKinsey & Company, a global management consulting firm, to learn how to reshape HCM City in the wake of the financial crisis, and how to accelerate its sustainable and inclusive growth.

It also met with the Sasaki Associates Inc., a design firm specialising in architecture, interior design, urban design, space planning, landscape architecture, and others. The city wanted the company to help with the general planning for the new Thủ Đức City.

HCM City is Việt Nam’s most dynamic and largest city, accounting for 25 per cent of the national GDP and 30 per cent of revenue.

The US remains one of Việt Nam’s largest trading partners. Bilateral trade between the two countries reached $112 billion last year, rising from $90.8 billion in 2020.

According to the Foreign Investment Agency, currently the US has some 1,145 projects with a total registered capital of $10.3 billion, and experts said there is still a lot more room for growth. — VNS