HANOI, Jan.23 (Xinhua) -- Cash as a mode of payment has declined in Vietnam by 2 percent in the past six years, from 14.02 percent in 2010 to the current 12 percent, according to the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) on Monday.
The country currently has around 67.4 million bank accounts compared to 16.8 million accounts in 2010. Meanwhile, the number of bank cards has increased by 11.36 percent against the end of 2015, to around 111 million now, reported Sai Gon Giai Phong (Sai Gon Liberation) online newspaper.
There are around 254,000 points of sales (POS) and 17,380 automatic teller machines (ATMs) nationwide, up 13.77 percent and 5.39 percent, respectively, compared to end of 2015.
The central bank has issued policies to boost non-cash payments, to protect customer interests, and ensure quality of service.
In a related move, Vietnamese government has recently approved a policy encouraging cashless transactions in Vietnam, which aims to reduce the number of cash-based deals, improve electronic payment methods and control tax evasion.
Under the plan, by 2020, cash transactions in the country will account for less than 10 percent of total market transactions. As per the plan, all supermarkets, shopping malls and distributors will accept credit cards; 70 percent of water, electronics and telecommunication service providers will accept cash-free payments from households and individuals; and 50 percent of the total urban households will use electronic payment for daily transactions.
The policy also proposes at least 70 percent of Vietnamese citizens over the age of 15 to have bank accounts by the end of 2020 while social welfare and pensions will be paid through electronic payment methods.
