STRATEGIC PARTNERS
May 13, 2003
HANOI, Vietnam -- Vietnam may establish an ATM joint-stock firm in order to meet the demand of the country's rapidly developing ATM market.
The governor of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has assembled a committee to found what will be called the National Automatic Teller Machines Interchange Center, according to Asia Times Online.
Vietnamese banks have thus far installed more than 200 ATMs; that number is expected to double by the end of 2003, according to SBV's Banking Technologies Department.
Large commercial banks are leading the way. For instance, the Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam owns 70 ATMs, 30 of which have been placed in supermarkets, trading centers, hotels or other public places.
Installation of ATMs is expected to account for half of commercial banks' technology investments by 2005, mounting to hundreds of millions of dollars, according to Asia Times Online.
