The Southeast Asian nation secured its position in the first quintile – representing the top 20% globally – in the operational efficiency pillar, which measures how easily businesses can comply with regulations and use public services.

Viet Nam joined 29 economies achieving top-quintile performance in one to three business areas.

According to the report, the country demonstrated exceptional strength in several areas, particularly utility services, where it scored 90.03 points – among the highest globally – and financial services at 80.32 points. Viet Nam also performed well in business entry (76.62), labour (69.63), and international trade (62.48).

However, the nation scored in the third quintile for both regulatory framework (67.03 points) and public services (53.93 points), indicating substantial room for improvement in these areas.

Significant weaknesses emerged in business insolvency, where Viet Nam scored only 35.66 points, and market competition at 47.61 points. These scores reveal critical gaps requiring targeted reforms to strengthen the business environment.

Globally, consistent strong performance remains rare. Only eight economies – including Singapore and Georgia as well as the UK and five other European nations – achieved top-quintile rankings across all three pillars. Singapore led the world in operational efficiency with 79.25 points, while OECD high-income economies demonstrated the most consistent excellence across assessment areas.

Within Southeast Asia, performance varies significantly. Singapore ranked first globally and Malaysia placed in the second quintile with 67.99 points in operational efficiency, while Cambodia scored 56.17 points in the third quintile. The region demonstrates both high performers and economies requiring substantial reforms.

The World Bank noted that economies with a young workforce, including Viet Nam, generally score lower across all assessment pillars compared to those with mature populations. The report emphasised that such economies face particular challenges in creating business environments conducive to job creation for expanding working-age populations.

The B-Ready assessment, which replaces the previous Doing Business report, evaluates economies across three pillars: regulatory framework, public services and operational efficiency. These pillars encompass 10 topics covering the complete business life cycle from establishment through operation to closure or reorganisation.

Data collection involved 5,000 local experts and surveys of 58,000 firms across participating economies. The methodology balances analysis of formal regulations with actual business practices to provide comprehensive assessments.

The project will expand from 101 economies in 2025 to more than 160 by 2026, with assessed economies currently averaging 60% business readiness globally.