A mock-up of the Red River Landscape Boulevard project in Hà Nội. Demand for capital for infrastructure projects is increasing sharply. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The maximum ratio of short-term capital used for medium- and long-term lending by credit institutions will be raised from the current 30 per cent to 40 per cent from July 1, according to a newly issued circular from the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV).

Circular 25/2026/TT-NHNN on limits for ratios in banking operations in Việt Nam will also amend regulations on determining total deposits when calculating the loan-to-deposit ratio.

Under current regulations, when determining total deposits, credit institutions must exclude all demand deposits from the State treasury and exclude 80 per cent of the treasury's time deposits. The new circular retains the exclusion of demand deposits from the State treasury, but adds a more flexible mechanism for time deposits. 

In addition to the current 80 per cent exclusion rate, the SBV’s governor can decide to apply a different rate depending on market developments.

According to the SBV, the amendments are based on the implementation of the Party and Government's policies on promoting economic growth in the next five years. 

The new circular will give credit institutions more room to provide capital to businesses and investment projects to support higher economic growth in the next few years, while increasing flexibility in the SBV’s monetary policy management.

CEO of financial services provider AFA Capital Nguyễn Minh Tuấn said the adjustment is expected to support medium- and long-term capital for economic growth.

Tuấn noted that Việt Nam is entering a new development cycle with high demand for investment capital for infrastructure, production, energy and large-scale projects. As the capital market is still unable to fully meet its role in providing medium- and long-term capital, the banking system remains the main channel for capital flow in the economy.

Economic growth will require a very large amount of capital. Amid increasing demand for medium- and long-term capital, while the majority of mobilised capital remains short-term, creating more room for the banking system is a solution to support growth, he said.

Nguyễn Quang Huy, CEO of Nguyễn Trãi University’s Finance and Banking Faculty, agreed, saying that raising the ratio to 40 per cent will give commercial banks more room to provide medium- and long-term credit, while reducing the pressure to mobilise long-term capital at high costs.

Demand for capital for infrastructure projects in transportation, energy, logistics, industrial parks and manufacturing is increasing sharply. These are all sectors that require a lot of capital, have long payback periods and are crucial for expanding the production capacity of the economy.

At the same time, Huy said the new policy can create more favourable conditions for social housing projects, industrial real estate and projects with completed legal procedures, thus supporting an increase in supply to the market.

Đỗ Bảo Ngọc, deputy general director of Vietnam Construction Securities Company, said that raising the ratio to 40 per cent will give banks more room for medium- and long-term lending without having to significantly increase long-term deposit mobilisation. 

This contributes to reducing pressure on issuing securities, certificates of deposit or competition in long-term deposit interest rates among banks, supporting the ability to supply capital to the economy.

Although considered a growth-support move, experts believe that expanding medium- and long-term credit capacity also places higher demands on the governance of credit institutions.

Tuấn said that banking operations are inherently linked to the process of converting maturities between mobilised capital and loans. Expansion of lending will therefore be accompanied by the requirement to improve asset and capital management capabilities and risk control.

According to analysts of the Vietcap Security Company, the entire banking sector will generally benefit from the new policy. However, some banks including Techcombank, VPBank and MB, whose ratios of short-term capital used for medium- and long-term lending as of the end of Q1 2026 were close to the regulated cap, will benefit more.

In addition, State-owned banks such as Vietcombank, BIDV and VietinBank, which have large outstanding loans in the infrastructure sector, will also benefit as the disbursement of their medium and long-term loans is accelerated. — BIZHUB/VNS