In remarks at a government conference on breakthrough solutions for social housing, the State Bank of Vietnam’s Governor Nguyen Thi Hong set out priorities for a demand-led approach to support and for designing specific financial measures to scale social housing sustainably. Work is under way with ministries and agencies to assess social housing demand by target group and tenure type (purchase, rent-to-own, and rental) to calibrate the size and form of support, with particular emphasis on low-income households’ rental needs and flexible interest-rate subsidies aligned with long loan tenors. The Governor also stressed that policy focus needs to shift to expanding supply and improving execution, pointing to administrative processes that can take 10–15 years and raise financing costs; shortening timelines to 2–3 years would allow bank capital to turn over faster and increase projects’ ability to access credit. Operational bottlenecks include inconsistent local processes for confirming borrower eligibility, which banks require to extend social housing loans. On funding, the Governor referenced a draft resolution that would task the State Bank of Vietnam with directing commercial banks’ participation in the VND 120 trillion credit programme, which has been increased to VND 145 trillion. Banks’ lending resources were described as available, with initial preferential-rate support balanced from banks’ own resources, while disbursement depends on local authorities publishing eligible project lists and resolving land allocation and investment procedure constraints. The Governor also highlighted the need to diversify long-term funding beyond commercial bank credit, including lending via the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies backed by state budget resources, and options such as government-guaranteed bond issuance and guarantee mechanisms funded by central or local budgets to support capable developers’ medium- and long-term market funding.
State Bank of Vietnam 2025-10-24
State Bank of Vietnam governor outlines demand-led social housing finance and conditions for the VND 145 trillion credit package
At a government conference, State Bank of Vietnam Governor Nguyen Thi Hong emphasized a demand-led approach to social housing, focusing on low-income rental needs and flexible interest-rate subsidies. She highlighted streamlining administrative processes to reduce financing costs and improve credit access, advocating for diversified long-term funding beyond commercial bank credit. A draft resolution proposes directing commercial banks' participation in an expanded VND 145 trillion credit program, with support from the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies and potential government-backed bond issuance.