POSs set to multiply

Switching companies Banknetvn, Smartlink and VNBC have completed connections with seven other additional banks in Ho Chi Minh City in its expansion process.

The new connected banks comprise DongA Bank, ACB, MB, MSB, Eximbank, Sacombank, Saigon Bank along with northern banks like Vietcombank, Agribank, Vietinbank, BIDV, Techcombank, VIB, SeaBank and OceanBank.

This is part of the State Bank and switching companies’ plan to expand POS connections from Hanoi to other cities.

Cardholders of all those banks enable to precede their payment by auto teller machines (ATMs) cards at 131 businesses in Ho Chi Minh City at super markets like BigC, Co.op Mart, Maximart, Metro, Citimart, electronics supermarket Thien Hoa, Nguyen Kim and Phan Khang as well as trade halls like Diamond Plaza, Parkson and Vincom trading centres.

The connection enables card holders in Hanoi to access services offered by 100 businesses including supermarkets, taxis and restaurants. The initiative will reach all 42,000 POSs nationwide.

Some 80 per cent of card transactions in Vietnam at present are for money withdrawals and only 5 per cent for payments. The country reportedly has 27 million banking cards including 25 million domestic cards with around 11,000 ATMs to date.

The number of POSs is still limited and it is to reach 500,000 POSs next year as well as make 40 domestic banks connected together to provide a large common-based infrastructure for card holders.

A Vietnam Bank Card Association report revealed the country had 21.6 million banking cards by the end of 2009, an increase of 147 per cent against 2008. The revenue of card usage was around VND330 trillion ($16.5 billion) in 2009, a rise of 140 per cent against that in 2008 and revenue of card payment was around $1 billion.