Key speakers share potential co-operation programmes between Việt Nam and Swiss partners in the Swiss–Viet Economic Forum (SVEF) in Đà Nẵng City. — VNS Photo Công Thành

ĐÀ NẴNG — Switzerland is proud to partner with Việt Nam, as their bilateral relationship continues to strengthen, built on trust, mutual benefit and a shared vision for inclusive, sustainable and resilient growth.

Swiss Ambassador to Việt Nam Thomas Gass made the remarks at the opening of the Swiss–Viet Economic Forum (SVEF) in Đà Nẵng, noting that while the two nations differ in size and geography, they are united by common values and a belief in open, rules-based development.

The ambassador also expressed his sympathy for communities in central Việt Nam affected by recent flooding.

“We have a human-based trade, a commitment to sustainability and a deep respect for innovation and education. Đà Nẵng’s ambition to become a regional fintech centre exemplifies the city’s spirit of progress that this forum seeks to foster,” Gass said.

He added that the forum highlights regional trade integration, sustainable finance, emerging technologies, green innovation and the future of entrepreneurship, with in-depth discussions on innovations in health and sustainable tourism.

Participants check-in an innovation and technology pavilion at the Swiss–Viet Economic Forum (SVEF) in Đà Nẵng. The city has called for supports and investment from Swiss partners in buiding an International Finance Centre in Đà Nẵng. — VNS Photo Công Thành

Deputy Chairman of the city’s People’s Committee Hồ Quang Bửu called for investment from Switzerland in fields such as FinTech, hi-tech industries, semiconductors, AI services and sustainable tourism.

He affirmed that Đà Nẵng would create the best possible conditions for Swiss investors to support the city in finance, the circular economy, innovation, start-ups and human resources training.

He said Switzerland and Việt Nam plan to elevate their relationship to a Comprehensive Partnership this year.

Bửu noted that Đà Nẵng (merged with the former Quảng Nam Province) has attracted 1,282 FDI projects worth US$10 billion, but Swiss investors have contributed only $1.13 million across three projects in the city.

He added that 40 organisations and partners have registered to participate in the development of an International Finance Centre in Đà Nẵng City.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Lê Thị Thu Hằng said Việt Nam and Switzerland agreed to boost the ‘green’ transition, and inclusive and sustainable growth at the World Economic Forum in Zurich last year.

She noted that Switzerland has invested $2.4 billion in Việt Nam, and the two sides have been negotiating free trade agreements focused on innovation, the ‘green’ transition, AI and hi-tech industries.

Hằng said Switzerland has been a typical EU partner in its co-operation with Việt Nam, and the country has allocated $800 million in non-refundable assistance to Việt Nam over the past 30 years.

Helene Budliger, State Secretary of the Federal Department of Economic Affairs and Research, said in her online opening remarks that Việt Nam’s remarkable economic transformation over the past decade has positioned it as a key player in regional and global value chains.

“Switzerland deeply values its long-standing partnership with Việt Nam and supports the country's ambitions to become a high-income economy by 2045 and to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050,” she said.

Business-to-Business matching events are arranged at the Swiss–Viet Economic Forum (SVEF) at Furama Đà Nẵng Resort. Việt Nam and Switzerland have been building trusts and partnership for decades in many fields of innovation, 'green' transition, finance and hi-tech industries. — VNS Photo Công Thành

“Through the Swiss Cooperation Programme, funded by SECO, Switzerland contributes to this mission by promoting sustainable trade and innovation, public and private finance and climate-smart industrial and urban development. As a result of these efforts, our bilateral trade continues to expand and we are working together to deepen it further.

"Recently, the 17th round of negotiations for a free trade agreement between Việt Nam, Switzerland and the other EFTA members came to an end and yielded very fruitful results.”

President of the Swiss-Viet Economic Forum Dr Phillip Rösler shared that it was a very long way from Switzerland to Đà Nẵng, as he was approached by the overseas Vietnamese community in Switzerland with the idea of creating a platform for exchange between Việt Nam and Switzerland.

“We have the same values, and Vietnamese as well as Swiss are hardworking, disciplined and entrepreneurial. It is an exchange between economies and business partners. We also have an interesting exchange of people. We are proud to bring in the finance expert community of Switzerland to Đà Nẵng in order to support the city in its efforts to become a very successful International Finance Centre among the community of IFCs.

“SVEF 2025 Đà Nẵng is about turning strategy into action – aligning policy, capital and know-how to accelerate innovation and inclusive growth. With Đà Nẵng’s momentum as an open, innovation-friendly city, we aim to seed concrete initiatives that benefit both economies.”

Mỹ Khê Beach in Sơn Trà Peninsula in Đà Nẵng City offers an ideal location for development of an international finance centre in near future. Đà Nẵng plans to allocate a property project for an IFC development. — Photo courtesy of Trần Lê Lâm

Bruno Jaspaert, president of EuroCham, shared that regional and global trade integration is turning bilateral agreements into multilateral value chains.

He said that in 2003, world trade volume was $7.5 trillion, but 328 free trade agreements had since been reached, and global trade volume is now four times larger.

Jaspaert explained why Switzerland and Việt Nam should have a free trade agreement.

“Việt Nam is the master of free trade agreements today after Singapore. No one is doing better in Asia, with 17 free trade agreements and 14 strategic partnerships,” he said.

He reminded that FDI is a good measurement of how popular a country is, but the internal development it could create is equally important.

Nguyễn Thị Vĩnh Phú from ABB Automation and Electrification Việt Nam urged for greater transparency and efficiency in implementing and operating foreign investment in Việt Nam.

She cited her company’s experience, saying it had wasted 18 months completing tax procedures required by local authorities before remitting profits to its parent company.

“The procedure should be finished in one month. We have been operating in Việt Nam for 32 years and have experience in tax procedures, but our fastest paperwork has taken six months,” Phú said. “We have expanded many branches in Việt Nam, but there is not yet a shared tax process among local tax agencies. Local tax authorities need to inform and share with each other through a technological platform about businesses’ tax responsibilities.”

Phạm Quốc Thanh, vice chairman of the board of directors of HD Bank, said banking and finance would be a backbone for Vietnamese small and medium-sized enterprises joining global supply chains.

He said HD Bank has built linkages with EU partners, including Germany and the UK, for business-to-business matching between Vietnamese SMEs and global partners.

Đỗ Thị Quỳnh Trâm, deputy director of Đà Nẵng’s Industry and Trade Department, said the central city has been seeking support from Switzerland in marketing skills and knowledge in cross-border trade activities.

She said it needs to set up a Swiss Desk in Đà Nẵng to provide information and a B2B forum for local companies to build profitable partnerships with Swiss enterprises.

The SVEF is a government-level initiative that strengthens cooperation in trade, investment, innovation and education between Switzerland and Việt Nam.

After three successful editions in Zurich, the 2025 Đà Nẵng edition marks SVEF’s first in-country gathering in Việt Nam, designed to deepen partnerships where they will be implemented.

Switzerland, in cooperation with the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, has been implementing four projects in Đà Nẵng City, including low carbon, smart city and innovation initiatives, and the two sides will boost cooperation in finance, sustainable tourism, innovation and hi-tech industries.

Last year, Đà Nẵng signed a trilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the development of the Đà Nẵng International Financial Centre (Đà Nẵng IFC) with Consessor AG, a Swiss strategic advisory firm focusing on internationalisation and market entry, and VinaCapital Group during the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Switzerland.

Philipp Rösler and Don Lam, CEO and founding partner of VinaCapital, agreed to help Đà Nẵng connect with financial education centres in Switzerland to train human resources for the future Đà Nẵng IFC.

The city has held working sessions and discussions with Swiss financial institutions, including Bitcoin Suisse and Maerki Baumann Bank.

The Ministry of Finance of Việt Nam and the Swiss FinTech Association have agreed to cooperate in developing the centre.

Local property developer Sun Group has also signed a strategic partnership with Switzerland’s EHL Hospitality Business School to establish a world-class international tourism academy in Việt Nam. — VNS