On June 28, 2024, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) issued Circular No. 19/2024/TT-NHNN to amend certain regulations of Circular No. 08/2023/TT-NHNN dated June 30, 2023 (‘Circular 08”), on conditions for foreign loans not guaranteed by the government (“Circular 19”). Circular 19 took effect on July 1, 2024, and provides changes in relation to, among other things, foreign loans to pay for goods import contracts and letters of credit. Foreign Loans to Pay for Goods Import Contracts Circular 08 exempts foreign loans in the form of deferred payment for imported goods (a buyer-seller relationship) from applicable foreign loan conditions. Circular 19 adds provisions regarding foreign loans taken out by non-bank borrowers (a buyer-seller-lender relationship) to make the deferred payments for goods import contracts for the implementation of an investment project, production or business plan, or other project. In this case, the foreign loan’s purpose is determined to be for implementing an investment project, production or business plan, or other project; and the borrower can exclude medium- and long-term foreign loan balances arising from the deferred payment in the import contracts when calculating the foreign loan limit. In addition, the borrower is allowed to borrow from foreign lenders to pay for the goods import contract via letters of credit. However, it is worth noting that other requirements relating to the loans are still applied to the borrower, such as foreign loan agreement, currency, and records/reporting obligations Letters of Credit Following the reclassification of letter of credit (L/C) activities from a “payment service” to “extension of credit” under the Law on Credit Institutions 2024, Circular 19 supplements L/C activities into the current foreign loan regulatory framework, including adding foreign loans between credit institutions and branches of foreign banks (as issuing banks) and non-resident banks (as reimbursing banks) where issuing banks are

In April 2024, Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance published a draft circular concerning securities transactions, clearing and settlement of securities transactions, activities of securities companies, and information disclosure on the securities market (the “Draft Circular”) for public feedback. The Draft Circular, if adopted, will amend several regulations impacting public companies and the securities market. Some of the more notable amendments are discussed below. Relaxing Pre-Funding Requirement for Foreign Institutional Investors To place orders to purchase securities, investors are currently required to have sufficient cash in their securities trading accounts to pay 100% of the cost of the transaction, except in cases of: Margin trading (applicable to Vietnamese investors only); and Transactions in which there is a settlement guarantee or confirmation from the custodian bank on accepting the settlement request. The Draft Circular allows foreign institutional investors (“FIIs”) to purchase securities without 100% pre-funding their securities trading accounts, based on a signed agreement with a securities company. However, the State Securities Commission of Vietnam (“SSC”) has the right to temporarily reinstate the 100% pre-funding requirement if measures for securities market stabilization are required. The Draft Circular also specifies that securities companies must (i) assess the capacity of FIIs to determine the pre-funding requirement under relevant agreements signed between them, and (ii) be responsible to settle the shortfall of a securities purchase order through their proprietary trading account(s) if the FIIs are unable to fully pay for such securities purchase order, except in certain circumstances. Further, a securities company cannot directly exempt or authorize other entities to exempt an FII from the 100% pre-funding requirement if the FII purchases securities of (i) such securities company, (ii) a company in which such securities company is a majority shareholder, or (iii) the parent company of such securities company. The 100% pre-funding requirement for FIIs

On May 17, 2024, Thailand’s Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) issued an amended Notification Concerning the Rules for Designating or Reviewing the List of High-Risk Customers Who Require Close Monitoring under the Ministerial Regulation on Customer Due Diligence B.E. 2563 (2020). This notification, which took effect the following day, updates the previous version of the notification from 2022 to cover cybercrimes listed under the Emergency Decree on Measures for the Prevention and Suppression of Technological Crimes B.E. 2566 (2023). The amended notification sets out the steps that all financial institutions in Thailand must take to manage money laundering risks and to comply with the AMLO’s mandatory Guidelines on Customer Due Diligence. Under the new notification, account holders suspected of engaging in or facilitating technological crimes, as recorded by the Anti Online Scam Operation Center (AOC), are to be classified as “high-risk persons.” The notification includes provisions for listing high-risk customers under two specific codes: HR-03-1: This code applies to individuals who are the subject of either a petition or a complaint related to a predicate offense accepted by the relevant inquiry officer and recorded as a criminal case. It also covers individuals whose bank accounts are suspected of being used to conduct transactions related to crimes under the Emergency Decree on Measures for the Prevention and Suppression of Technological Crimes B.E. 2566 (2023), with victims seeking prosecution. The names of individuals in this category are received from responsible agencies according to the Criminal Procedure Code or the AOC and are documented in a publicly accessible online notification system. HR-03-2: This code is for individuals involved in the commission of a predicate offense or those whose bank accounts are suspected of being used in such offenses, but whose cases have not been accepted or numbered by the relevant inquiry officer. Names

Vietnam’s new Law on Credit Institutions will take effect on July 1, 2024, replacing the current Law on Credit Institutions issued in 2010, and aims to strengthen banking operations and enhance transparency in this sector.