The People’s Committee of Dau Tieng district in the Binh Duong province announced plans to establish a pilot project that uses cashless payments at traditional markets, grocery stores, and other businesses.
Dau Tieng Lake attracts many tourists as it is located between Ho Chi Minh City and the provinces of Tay Ninh and Binh Phuoc. Through the move, the Committee will promote the implementation of digital transformation and digital payments, as well as encourage local businesses and enterprises to use digital platforms to make non-cash payments. Digital payments would be more convenient for tourists.
Non-cash payment methods include QR codes, Internet banking, Mobile Web Payment, and cards. By the end of 2022, Binh Duong strived to achieve 50% of schools, educational institutions, hospitals, and medical facilities using non-cash payment methods. Binh Duong is known for having modern payment methods at stores, schools, hospitals, administrative services, and shopping centres.
Cashless payment and transaction channels are increasingly popular in the province, with commercial banks, e-wallets, and fintech companies promoting the application of technology for online payments. Customers prefer cashless payments nowadays, with payment cards being the most favored method, followed by scanning QR codes for money transfers.
There has been a notable surge in card payments at various goods and service providers. According to commercial banks and e-wallet companies in Binh Duong, cashless transactions are currently more in demand than they were during the COVID-19 pandemic. Enterprises are ready for infrastructure with low investment costs that enhance convenience. The payment method that stands out the most and is expected to experience significant growth next year is QR code payments. Customers can select a payment source by opening banking apps or e-wallets, scanning the code, and completing the transaction.
The number of customers opening new accounts and registering for digital banking services in remote and rural parts of the country has been increasing. OpenGov Asia reported that this reflects a change in the payment habit of people, encouraged by the government and the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV).
The introduction of the Mobile Money service has become an important motivation for cashless payment in Vietnam. Data from the SBV from January show that the country has more than 72,000 transaction posts providing cashless payment services. Out of this figure, 39,000 are in rural and remote areas. In the first nine months of 2022, nearly 14 million customers, of whom 37.5% were from rural areas, used cashless payment services with a total transaction value of VND 167.68 trillion (US$ 7.09 billion).
For the Mobile Money service alone, as of the end of September, the service had 2.34 million accounts, including 1.62 million from rural and island areas. As of January, about 15 million transactions worth nearly VND 950 billion (US$ 40.1 million) have been conducted. Viettel Digital expects to have two million users of its Mobile Money service, 60% of whom are in rural and remote areas, with more than 3,000 transaction points as of the end of 2022. Meanwhile, the National Payment Corporation of Vietnam (NAPAS) has covered more than 50 banks. The banking sector has also been coordinating with the Ministry of Public Security to roll out effective piloted measures to further promote cashless payment in rural and remote areas.
