The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has requested credit institutions and branches of foreign banks to boost consumer lending. (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi – The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has requested credit institutions and branches of foreign banks to boost consumer lending as part of efforts to prevent loan sharks who have targeted vulnerable people.

In its document, the central bank said that the move aims at carrying out the Prime Minister’s dispatch on enhancing measures to prevent and handle “black credit” activities.

Accordingly, credit institutions and foreign banks’ branches are ordered to proactively balance capital resources, and diversify credit products, making them suitable with different groups of customers.

Besides, the central bank said that it is necessary to bolster digital transformation, step up the application of science and technology to shorten the time of the settlement of loan applications, and simplify lending procedures for customers.

Along with accessing the national population database to check and authenticate customer information to ensure effective and safe lending, the financial institutions are asked to promote communications work to raise public awareness of the lending activities, credit offerings, and measures to get access to the products.