Agribank Seeks to Double Cap to Around US$1.3B
Agribank, the country’s state-owned bank by assets, has proposed the State Bank of Vietnam and the Ministry of Finance to double its registered capital to VND20 trillioni-VND22 trillion (US$1.18 billion-US$1.3 billion).
The move is aimed to provide better services for local farmers and agricultural sector, the paper cited Agribank Chairman Do Tat Ngoc as saying.
The Hanoi-based bank has also sought permission to use more than VND30 trillion from its deposits kept at the State Treasury plus around VND5 trillion at the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies to boost credit for farmers.
As of late March, Agribank had total deposits of VND405.9 trillion and total outstanding loans of VND307.7 trillion, up 11.8 per cent and 8.1 per cent against early this year, respectively.
The bank's loans have been rising since the government introduced a rate subsidy program in January to stimulate the economy amid ongoing global economic downturn.
Agribank has so far provided VND70.2 trillion in subsidized loans, accounting for 32 per cent of total outstanding loans given under the program.
This year, Agribank projects loans to grow 15 per cent-17 per cent, up from 14 per cent a year ago, with 70 per cent of its credit going to farmers. (Vietnam Economic Times, Countryside Today)
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