SBV steps up efforts to clean up bank accounts and boost digital banking

Vietnam currently has over 200 million bank accounts, yet only 113 million have affected biometric verification, raising concerns that many unverified accounts may be 'dead' or 'dormant', and even used for fraud purposes.

The figures were unveiled at the press conference, jointly held by the Payment Department under State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) and the Banking Times magazine, to announce the 'Digital Transformation in the Banking Sector 2025' event on May 26 in Hanoi.

Scheduled for May 29 at the Government Office in Ba Dinh district, Hanoi, the event will be attended by top leaders from the government, the SBV, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Finance, Hanoi People's Committee, the Data Association, as well as credit institutions and payment intermediary service providers.

At the press conference, Pham Anh Tuan, director general of the Payment Department, noted that after four years of implementing Decision No. 810 approving the digital transformation plan for the banking sector towards 2025 with a vision to 2030, the sector has achieved encouraging results contributing significantly to the overall economic development.

Notably, the banking sector has effectively teamed up with the Ministry of Public Security in implementing Scheme 06 on developing applications of population data, electronic identification, and authentication in support of the national digital transformation for the 2022-2025 period with a vision to 2030.

Doan Thanh Hai, deputy director of SBV's Information Technology Department, highlighted that Scheme 06 has helped the banking sector clean up customer data and eliminate non-genuine accounts.

“As of May 16, 2025, more than 130.5 million individual customer profiles had been verified and cleansed- 113 million through chip-based ID cards or VNeID, and 17.5 million through offline methods,” Hai said.

Additionally, over 711,300 organizational customer records have been verified. The most significant outcome of implementing Scheme 06, according to officials, is the enhancement of data integrity and fraud prevention.

Tuan from SBV's Payment Department noted that since the adoption of biometric verification, fraud-related customer losses have significantly decreased.

However, out of the more than 200 million existing bank accounts, tens of millions have yet to undergo biometric verification.

"These unverified accounts may be inactive, fraudulent, or dormant. Under current regulations, dormant accounts cannot yet be terminated, but the SBV plans to briefly introduce new guidelines to close such accounts in the near future," said Tuan.

The SBV is currently drafting amendments to Circular No.17/2024/TT-NHNN governing the opening and use of payment accounts at licensed payment service providers.

Expected to take effect on September 1, the revised circular will tighten controls over institutional accounts to prevent fraudsters from shifting to using institutional accounts for scams.

The draft stipulates that such accounts must be opened in person at credit institution branches and prohibits opening by mail or power of attorney. Furthermore, the SBV will require the collection of biometric data from legal representatives of organisations when opening accounts.

This year, the theme of the '2025 Banking Sector Digital Transformation' event is 'Smart Digital Ecosystem in the New Era', which clearly conveys the message that the banking sector places citizens and businesses at the centre of its services.

The theme emphasizes promoting the adoption of innovative products and services, developing a smart, interconnected, and secure digital ecosystem, and aiming for comprehensive, inclusive, and end-to-end digital transformation to accelerate and drive the growth of the digital economy.

This commitment contributes to elevating Vietnam's global standing and realising the nation's aspirations in a new historical phase. The theme also accurately reflects the spirit of Politburo's Resolution 57 that outlines Vietnam's strategy for promoting digital transformation and breakthroughs in science, technology, and innovation, and aligns with the national digital transformation theme for 2025.

According to SBV figures, as of March 2025, non-cash payment transactions had reached over 5.2 billion, with a total value approximating $3.2 trillion, reflecting a 44.4 per cent increase in volume and a 24.3 per cent increase in value compared to the same period in 2024.

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