MISA's booth at the 2026 Banking Digital Transformation event in Hà Nội. — Photo courtesy of the firm

HÀ NỘI — The banking sector has been urged to pursue practical applications of AI while ensuring digital transformation does not compromise security, privacy or public trust.

Speaking at the 2026 Banking Digital Transformation event in Hà Nội on Tuesday, Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) Phạm Đức Ấn said the sector was entering a new phase, moving beyond digitisation towards deeper use of data and AI to improve productivity, competitiveness and economic efficiency.

Held under the theme 'Smart Banking in the Data and AI Era', the two-day event marked five years of digital transformation in the banking sector.

Banks have progressed from connecting and exploiting population data to developing digital ecosystems and smarter services. The sector’s new message is: 'Data leads, AI accompanies, banking creates a digital ecosystem'.

Ấn said that data and AI are not ends in themselves, but tools to improve management, develop products, control risks and deliver better services. Digital transformation should also reduce social costs, expand financial access and create new drivers of economic growth.

Over the past five years, the sector has strengthened its legal framework, payment and digital infrastructure, connections with national databases and digital banking services. However, Ấn warned that challenges involving data quality, cybersecurity, fraud, privacy and AI governance are emerging rapidly.

He called for stronger regulation and infrastructure, better data quality and greater use of data in supervision and decision-making. Banks should ensure data is correct, clean and consistent and improve connections with the National Data Centre and other databases.

AI must deliver real value

Ấn urged banks not to adopt AI simply as a trend, but to focus on applications that generate measurable benefits, including data analysis, risk management, fraud detection, process optimisation, customer service and product development.

Banks should also establish AI governance covering accountability, data protection and customers’ rights.

Cybersecurity must remain a priority as criminals increasingly use AI, deepfakes and other sophisticated technologies. The central bank governor called for a shift from responding to incidents towards prevention, with greater investment in cybersecurity, data protection and anti-fraud measures.

The SBV said that by July 31, biometric verification had been completed for more than 167.8 million individual customer records and over 2.78 million organisational records using chip-based citizen identification cards or the VNeID app.

Through August 6, the SIMO system had issued warnings involving more than 4.9 million potentially fraudulent or illegal payment accounts and e-wallets. More than 1.6 million customers subsequently suspended or cancelled transactions worth over VNĐ5.5 trillion (US$210 million).

Ấn also stressed that digital transformation must serve people and businesses and support financial inclusion. Banks should use data to improve credit assessment and product development, particularly for small businesses, household enterprises, cooperatives, workers and rural communities.

Digital banking should remain accessible to older people, vulnerable groups and residents in remote areas. The Governor also called for greater investment in workers in data, AI, technology and cybersecurity.

By the end of 2025, nearly 89 per cent of Vietnamese people aged 15 and above had payment accounts, while many credit institutions recorded digital transaction rates above 95 per cent. Cashless payment value was equivalent to more than 28 times GDP.

From 2021 to 2025, the number and value of cashless transactions grew by an average of 58.86 per cent and 24.36 per cent annually. In the first six months of 2026, transaction numbers rose 34.28 per cent and value increased 12.24 per cent year-on-year.

The figures highlight the sector’s rapid digitalisation, but the Governor’s message is clear: the next phase must combine innovation with security, accountability and public trust.

At the event, MISA highlighted its five-year partnership with the banking sector in advancing digital transformation. A key highlight was MISA Lending, a digital lending platform that helps businesses and household enterprises access financing based on financial data generated during their operations, including accounting records, invoices, revenue and cash flow.

"MISA Lending is now connected with 16 banks and serves around 400,000 businesses and household enterprises within the MISA ecosystem. The platform has facilitated total credit limits of VNĐ23.86 trillion and disbursements of VNĐ40.09 trillion. Loan applications can be completed in five minutes and approved within one day without collateral, with a 36.2 per cent success rate," MISA's Deputy General Director Nguyễn Thị Ngoan told Việt Nam News.

The results demonstrate the potential for digital data in credit assessment, helping banks better understand customers while bringing financing closer to small businesses and household enterprises, she added. — VNS