Among 27 listed and unlisted banks that have reported H1 results, 23 posted year-on-year profit growth.

Among the Big 4, Vietcombank (HoSE: VCB) remained Vietnam's most profitable bank, reporting VND29.22 trillion ($1.11 billion) in pre-tax profit, up 33.5% from a year earlier. VietinBank (HoSE: CTG) followed with VND25.87 trillion, an increase of 36.7%.

By contrast, smaller lenders posted significantly stronger growth rates despite their more modest earnings base.

BVBank (HoSE: BVB) reported a 486% year-on-year surge in H1 pre-tax profit to VND547 billion ($20.82 million), while ABBank (UPCoM: ABB) earned VND3.02 trillion ($114.93 million), up 80%. Vietbank posted VND923 billion, up 79.4%; and PGBank recorded VND439.7 billion, up 65.7%.

National Citizen Bank (NCB) reported VND726.7 billion ($27.65 million) in after-tax profit, a year-on-year increase of 57%.

Growth supported by core banking activities

Unlike previous periods when earnings growth was often driven by one-off gains, many of this year's strongest performers expanded profits alongside improvements in lending, deposits, capital, and recurring income.

BVBank provided one of the clearest examples. The lender generated VND332 billion ($12.63 million) in pre-tax profit in Q2 alone, roughly 25 times the level recorded a year earlier.

The improvement was supported by stronger net interest income rather than extraordinary gains. Outstanding loans increased 7.3% from the beginning of the year to more than VND83.3 trillion ($3.17 billion), while customer deposits climbed nearly 14% to VND81.3 trillion. Total assets reached VND142 trillion ($5.4 billion), up 6.7%, indicating broad-based balance-sheet expansion.

ABBank also combined robust earnings with improving financial fundamentals. Its H1 pre-tax profit reached VND3.02 trillion ($114.93 million), representing 67% of its full-year target.

The bank ended June with VND260.7 trillion ($9.92 billion) in total assets, VND138 trillion in outstanding loans and VND163 trillion in customer deposits. Its non-performing loan (NPL) ratio remained low at 0.55%, while its capital adequacy ratio (CAR) exceeded 12%, suggesting that profitability has been accompanied by solid capital and asset quality.

Restructuring begins to deliver results

Among the strongest stories this reporting season was National Citizen Bank (NCB), which has spent the past five years undergoing comprehensive restructuring.

The bank reported Q2 after-tax profit of VND510.7 billion ($19.43 million), up 64% year-on-year and nearly 136% higher than the previous quarter, the highest quarterly profit in its history.

For the first six months, the figure reached VND726.7 billion ($27.65 million)), up 57% from a year earlier.

The earnings recovery coincided with rapid business expansion. Total assets rose 21.5% from the end of 2025 to nearly VND199 trillion ($7.57 billion), already exceeding the bank's full-year target. Customer lending increased by almost VND36 trillion in just six months to VND133.5 trillion, while Q2 net interest income grew 36% year-on-year to VND1.03 trillion ($39.2 million).

The results suggest that NCB has moved beyond the balance-sheet repair phase and entered a new stage focused on business growth.

PGBank and Vietbank displayed similar trends.

PGBank reported H1 pre-tax profit of VND439.7 billion ($16.74 million), up 65.7% year-on-year, while increasing its charter capital by more than 33% from the end of 2025 to VND7.33 trillion ($278.99 million) in July. Service income more than doubled, helping diversify revenue beyond traditional lending, although its 1.87% NPL ratio remains an indicator to monitor.

Vietbank posted VND923 billion ($35.13 million) in H1 pre-tax profit, up 79.4%, alongside a 26% increase in net interest income. Outstanding loans rose 11%, customer deposits increased 5.6%, and the bank completed a capital increase to nearly VND11.85 trillion ($451.03 million) before listing its shares on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) in July.

Taken together, these results indicate that Vietnam's smaller lenders are no longer improving earnings alone, they are strengthening funding, expanding lending, raising capital and diversifying income simultaneously.

Larger banks face margin and provisioning pressures

Not all banks shared the same momentum. SeABank (HoSE: SSB) reported H1 pre-tax profit of VND2.63 trillion ($100.1 million), down nearly 55% from a year earlier despite credit growth of almost 8%. The bank attributed the decline to a high comparison base, rising funding costs and lower lending rates offered to existing borrowers through preferential credit programs.

Sacombank (HoSE: STB) also estimated that H1 profit fell by around 50%, primarily because of a sharp increase in credit-loss provisions. Its leadership said Q2 provisioning expenses could exceed VND4.7 trillion ($178.89 million), while the bank's NPL ratio was estimated at 5.6%.

By comparison, SHB (HoSE: SHB) reported relatively stable earnings, with H1 pre-tax profit reaching VND9.09 trillion ($346.07 million). While headline profit growth was modest, service income surged 277%. By the end of June, total assets climbed 8% to VND962.7 trillion ($36.65 billion) as compared to 2025-end, while credit outstanding rose 7.2% and the NPL ratio remained at 1.76%.

The contrasting performances illustrate the different stages of the banking cycle. Some lenders are beginning to harvest the benefits of years of restructuring and balance-sheet strengthening, while others continue to devote significant resources to resolving legacy asset-quality issues.

Outlook remains positive but more selective

Brokerage Maritime Bank Securities (MBS) expects Vietnam's banking sector to remain on a growth trajectory in 2026, forecasting industry-wide credit growth of around 15% and overall profit growth of approximately 18%.

However, it notes that net interest margins (NIMs) will remain under pressure as deposit rates edge higher while banks face limited room to increase lending rates. Provisioning expenses are projected to rise by only 9.3%, supported by improving asset quality following aggressive bad-debt resolution over the past two years.

Against that backdrop, banks with strong deposit franchises, rising low-cost CASA (current account savings account) balances, diversified non-interest income, and well-controlled asset quality are expected to outperform, it says.