Speaking at the Digital Trust in Finance 2026 forum in Hanoi, Deputy Governor Pham Tien Dung of the State Bank of Vietnam set out the central bank’s approach to artificial intelligence in banking, stressing that digital innovation must be matched by safety, risk control and customer protection. He described digital trust as strategic infrastructure for the digital economy and said responsibility for protecting it cannot rest with individual banks, securities firms, e-wallet providers or technology platforms alone, but must be shared across the financial ecosystem. In this context, AI can support, recommend and warn, but should not dilute final human and institutional accountability for financial decisions. Dung pointed to the banking sector’s rapid rollout of e-banking, digital payments, electronic customer identification, biometric authentication, mobile banking, e-wallets and broader digital financial ecosystems, while warning that faster digital banking increases the need for security and user protection. He cited the State Bank of Vietnam’s work to strengthen the legal and security framework for online banking, expand biometric authentication, coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security on Project 06 to clean customer data, combat fraud, dummy accounts and improperly registered accounts, and require credit institutions to upgrade technology, information security, information technology risk management and business continuity. He also highlighted AI use cases in operations, credit scoring, customer service, unusual transaction detection, fraud prevention and anti-money laundering, alongside risks including deepfakes, personalised scams, identity fraud, algorithmic bias, black box models, third-party dependence and inadequately controlled automated decisions. He called for shared risk alerts, coordinated handling of suspicious accounts, earlier fraud detection and compliance with personal data protection and cybersecurity rules.
State Bank of Vietnam 2026-05-12
State Bank of Vietnam outlines responsible AI approach and calls for ecosystem-wide safeguards for digital financial trust
The State Bank of Vietnam’s Deputy Governor Pham Tien Dung outlined the central bank’s approach to artificial intelligence in banking, stressing that digital innovation must be matched by safety, risk control and customer protection, and that AI must not dilute human and institutional accountability for financial decisions. He highlighted the rapid expansion of digital banking and payments, the State Bank’s efforts to strengthen legal and security frameworks, biometric authentication and data cleansing with the Ministry of Public Security, and the requirement for credit institutions to upgrade technology, information security and risk management. Dung also underscored AI’s benefits in credit scoring, fraud detection and anti-money laundering, and the associated risks, calling for shared risk alerts, coordinated handling of suspicious accounts and strict compliance with personal data protection and cybersecurity rules.