In an interview with Sai Gon Giai Phong Newspaper, Nguyen Ngoc Hoa, Chairman of the Board of Members of Ho Chi Minh City Financial and Investment State-Own Company (HFIC), talked about solutions that HFIC has implemented to help businesses solve capital problems when the global commercialization trend is changing towards greening and digitalization, requiring businesses to transform production appropriately if they want to survive and develop.
According to Chairman Nguyen Ngoc Hoa, to support capital in the most effective way for businesses, HFIC has synchronously implemented three solutions to increase HFIC's operating capital. Specifically, the compay has made adjustments to increase charter capital from development investment capital and HFIC's capital sources according to the National Assembly-approved Resolution 98/2023/QH15 on piloting a number of mechanisms and policies for HCMC’s development.
Moreover, HFIC supplements capital from the equitization activities of state-owned enterprises. Last but not least, HFIC proactively works with financial institutions to implement capital mobilization plans according to each target program and specific project.
In fact, HFIC has worked with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and credit rating organizations to upgrade HFIC's credit rating, as a basis for increasing capital mobilization capacity. Along with that, the company is also working with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the World Bank (WB) to quickly access cheap capital and expand the mobilization of capital from foreign countries and organizations. It is estimated that HFIC can mobile around VND 100,000 billion (US$ 4,073,556,818) which will be available for supplementing investment capital for businesses in the near future.
Currently, about 500,000 businesses in Ho Chi Minh City are operating in many fields. From now until 2025, the city has identified five industry groups and projects including projects in the fields of high technology and digital transformation, startups, innovation companies, trade and serve agricultural production, health, education - training, vocational education, culture, sports; economic, technical and environmental infrastructure that will receive investment capital support from HFIC.
In addition, to assist businesses to easily access loans from the budget without facing complicated administrative procedures, HFIC has established a consulting team specializing in supporting businesses in resolving administrative procedures.
Chairman Hoa revealed that HFIC will appraise and evaluate loan applications. The maximum loan amount for a project is up to VND200 billion and the loan period is 7-10 years. However, for each specific project case, there will be two interest rate support levels of 50 percent or 100 percent.
For example, production investment projects in the high-tech category are given priority for development investment and the high-tech product category is encouraged to develop according to the Prime Minister's decision or as research and development investment projects that apply technological results, technology transfer, or measuring and testing high-tech products will enjoy full loan interest support.
Meanwhile, HFIC will give 50 percent loan interest support on new investment projects that expand production, invest in assembling and building new means of transport using new and modern technology (using electricity and gas: LNG, CNG, LPG), and protect the environment. In addition, investment projects in the construction and exploitation of static traffic terminals, building exploitation infrastructure and developing waterway tourist transport or investment projects for the development of logistics infrastructure will also receive 50 percent loan interest support.
In the coming time, HFIC will focus on research and implementation of four important issues including building HFIC into a large and strong financial institution, advising the city to successfully develop Vietnam's International Financial Center Project in Ho Chi Minh City as well as becoming a connector to help businesses lend capital under Ho Chi Minh City's investment stimulus program.
Finally, HFIC will implement the HFIC restructuring project for the period 2023-2025 after the municipal People's Committee approves.
