The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Securities and Exchange Commission have launched a project to enhance capacity to promote market efficiency.
This is a follow-up project of the project “Capacity enhancement for improving fairness and transparency of Vietnam’s stock market” implemented by JICA from 2019 to 2023.
The new project will continue to be implemented from now until 2027. Accordingly, the JICA expert team will help improve the capacity of the State Securities Commission and the three exchanges, through many activities such as close consultation and capacity building on many related issues.
This project focuses on key issues such as supervision and inspection of the stock market, supervision of intermediary institutions; management of listing and offering of securities to the public according to international standards; raising awareness of the responsibility of listed companies to protect investors.
Leaders of JICA and the State Securities Commission at the cooperation event on September 23. Photo: JICA
According to Ms. Vu Thi Chan Phuong, Chairwoman of the State Securities Commission (SSC), with extensive experience in building the Japanese stock market, JICA continues to support the Vietnamese stock market to develop in line with the industry’s strategy.
At the same time, the cooperation will also help the Securities Commission strengthen its management capacity and protect the interests of market members. This is very meaningful when the Vietnamese market is striving to upgrade its ranking next year. JICA’s new support project will also promote the Vietnamese stock market to integrate deeply into ASEAN as well as internationally.
The head of SSC said that by the end of August, the capitalization of the Vietnamese stock market reached more than 7 quadrillion VND, equivalent to 280 billion USD – an increase of over 19% compared to the end of last year. Foreign investors own about 50 billion USD worth of shares, accounting for 17% of the market capitalization.
Mr. Satoru Kawasaki, Deputy Commissioner in charge of international affairs at the Japan Financial Services Agency (JFSA), said that Japan, with its experience, is ready to help Vietnam have the right direction in both economic development as well as the stock market in a sustainable, safe and transparent manner.
Mr. Kojima Kazunobu, chief advisor at JICA, informed that foreign investors, including Japanese ones, are paying a lot of attention to the Vietnamese stock market. “If large companies or emerging enterprises conduct IPOs, a large amount of foreign capital will flow in. But in recent years, the number of new listed companies on the Vietnamese stock market has been very limited,” said Mr. Kazunobu.
According to JICA experts, the best opportunity for foreigners to invest in Vietnam’s securities is through IPOs. However, the current IPO auction process makes it difficult for them to participate. In this regard, Mr. Kazunobu hopes that a new IPO method, compatible with international standards such as underwriting/book building, will soon be established.
Anh Tu