The clients joining this programme are local SMEs operating in either manufacturing, trading, or service industries that require financing against e-invoices issued by them to meet their working capital requirements, which in turn supports their business growth.

SMEs who have access to MISA Lending are now able to request an indicative loan amount through just two clicks from their computers and receive the approval-in-principle result within 30 minutes.

With explicit consent from the clients for the use of their data to process loan applications, Standard Chartered uses multiple data points and digital underwriting to provide them with suitable credit limits. The official onboarding aspect only takes a few working days, and then the SMEs can present invoices for financing. Throughout the pilot phase, this break-through delivery has helped many SMEs to access funds from Standard Chartered in a simple and convenient manner.

This partnership combines MISA’s pioneering application of cloud-based technologies to simplify and improve the efficiency of their clients’ processes with Standard Chartered’s global expertise in business banking and financing to deliver significant value to their clients.

Michele Wee, CEO of Standard Chartered Vietnam said, "This strategic partnership with MISA has allowed us to provide financing to SMEs, which is critical in Vietnam, in an efficient and meaningful way. We will continue to work to deepen the suite of products needed to increase the viability of SMEs, which will ultimately impact the grassroots of society."

Nguyen Xuan Hoang, vice chairman of MISA remarked, "The cooperation between MISA and Standard Chartered Bank will provide much-needed funding to hundreds of thousands of under banked SMEs without collateral requirements via MISA Lending. MISA is committed to continuously applying the most advanced technologies to improve SMEs' access to affordable financing while reducing the costs and risks for our banking partners."

Harmander Mahal, head of Consumer, Private, and Business Banking for Vietnam and Asia Cluster Markets at Standard Chartered Bank said, "We’re excited to be pioneers in this space that promises to have a significantly positive impact on SMEs in Vietnam. By providing them with more effective access to financing solutions, we can accelerate broader financial inclusion and further contribute to the economy’s growth through this important segment."