Phongsavanh Bank opens office in Vietnam

Phongsavanh Bank opens office in Vietnam

Hanoi, Vietnam: Phongsavanh Bank Limited (PSVB) officially opened a representative office in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Wednesday after receiving a licence from the State Bank of Vietnam last February.

“The main functions of the Hanoi representative office are to identify business opportunities and cooperation, collect information on the Vietnamese market and liaise with financial institutions in Vietnam to encourage business rel ationships,” the bank's Deputy Managing Director Mr Bounthanh Vongsoury said.

“The opening of this office aims to promote and follow up the implementation of the agreement signed between PSVB and Vietnamese financial institutions,” Mr Bounthanh said at the opening ceremony in Hanoi.

Deputy Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam, Mr Dang Thanh Binh, and officials from the Bank of the Lao PDR, Lao Embassy to Vietnam and Vietnamese banks participated in the ceremony.

Bank Supervision De-partment Director General of the Bank of the Lao PDR, Mr Phouthaxay Sivilay, said “The Hanoi office is committed to actively contributing to the economic cooperation, investment and development of the two countries' financial and banking sectors.”

Bank Supervision De-partment Director General of the State Bank of Vietnam, Mr Duong Quoc Anh, said the office marks an important step in the expansion of Lao banking in Vietnam.

“The State Bank of Vietnam is pleased to support the cooperation for the growth trend of the two countries' economic integration,” he said.

PSVB is the first private Lao bank, and was established in February 2007 by the Phongsavanh Group with a licence from the Bank of the Lao PDR.

After five years, PSVB has total assets worth five times the 2007 value. It holds 200,000 deposit accounts with total deposits worth 6.5 times as much as in 2007 and has issued loans valued at seven times the 2007 figure, according to a press release.

Mr Phouthaxay said “The bank has been vigorously developing its business services and its assets have increased by an average of 76.07 percent per year.”

PSVB has been expanding its network to meet the needs of its customers. Up to now, it has seven branches and service centres and 12 transaction offices. Five more branches are under construction and two new transaction offices will open in the near future, the press release noted.

At present, the bank has 390 employees and nine banks for business cooperation in other countries, and two representative offices in Hanoi, Vietnam, and Bangkok, Thailand.

Last year, the bank was awarded a Bank of Quality prize in Paris, France, and was the first Lao bank to issue Visa and Master cards.

Since 2008, it has been the official partner of the Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam (Agribank).

vientiane times