Vietnam Currency Discussion Board

[RICK C]

Foreign banks make swap on dong rates

(30-05-2007)

HCM CITY — HSBC and Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) marked a new stage of development in the Vietnamese dong market with the first inter-bank swap on the Vietnamese dong interest rate last week.

This was a landmark deal which has created a strong foundation for the development of the derivatives market in Viet Nam.

With the 5-year VND IRS (VND interest rate swap) transaction, HSBC paid a floating rate for a 3-month VNIBOR1 (the Vietnam interbank offered rate, an average rate accepted by seven major foreign banks in the country) on US$3 million in exchange for a fixed dong rate offered by SCB.

Greg Clinton, Global Head of Interest Rate Derivatives (IRD) at SCB commented on the deal: "The dong market is set to follow other markets in the South East Asian region and develop liquid IRD markets that allow corporates and institutions to better manage their interest rate risks. The development of the interbank market is an important part of the market growth as it allows banks to transfer risk and ultimately to reduce the cost of hedging for clients."

IRS is flexible as both a hedging tool and investment strategy for corporate customers and financial institutions. The swap can be highly tailor-made to specifically match customers’ cash flows, achieving effective hedging while still offering customers a competitive rate. — VNS