Vietnam Taxonomy – The Prerequisite for Accelerating and Global Integrating Vietnam’s Sustainable Finance Market

The morning of May 29, the “Vietnam Sustainable Finance Webinar 2025: Meeting International and Vietnam’s Green Standards” organized by FiinRatings, attracted over than 200 attendees, including representatives from issuers, financial institutions, investors, regulators, and international development organizations.

The morning of May 29, the “Vietnam Sustainable Finance Webinar 2025: Meeting International and Vietnam’s Green Standards” organized by FiinRatings, attracted over than 200 attendees, including representatives from issuers, financial institutions, investors, regulators, and international development organizations. 

At the opening, Mr. Nguyen Quang Thuan, Chairman and CEO of FiinRatings, stated: “Recent directives and policies—including Politburo's Resolution No.68-NQ/TW and National Assembly’s Resolution 198/2025/QH15 —have made the development of a comprehensive sustainable finance framework aligned with international best practices more urgent than ever. Such a framework is expected to drive robust growth in Vietnam’s sustainable finance activities and enable Vietnamese enterprises to access and mobilize green capital more effectively.” 

In Vietnam, the green finance policy framework has advanced significantly in recent months. In particular, Resolution No.68-NQ/TW calls to: “Promote the development of green credit. The State shall introduce mechanisms for the interest rate support and encourage credit institutions to reduce loan interest rates for private enterprises executing green, circular projects and applying environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards” as one of the measures to strengthen and diversify funding sources for the private sector. 

Subsequently, Resolution 198/2025/QH15 of the National Assembly introduced a specific 2% interest-rate subsidy: “Private sector enterprises, business households, and individual entrepreneurs shall be supported by the State with a 2% per annum interest subsidy when borrowing to carry out green and circular projects and apply ESG standards” (Article 9: Financial and Credit Support) 

Currently, green bond and green loan transactions remain very limited and are largely carried out on a voluntary basis in accordance with international green principles and standards. These recent directives and policies demonstrate that demand for sustainable finance—including green credit and green bonds—now has a solid foundation to grow robustly in the near future. 

During the webinar, Mr. Bertrand Jabouley, Head of Sustainable Finance, Asia-Pacific, S&P Global Ratings, pointed out that Vietnam’s share of sustainable bond issuance remains very low—just roughly USD 1.2 billion in 2021, or about 27% of the country’s GDP—modest compared with regional peers like South Korea, Japan, or Western countries where it exceeds 100%. However, 2024 saw a threefold year-on-year increase in sustainable bond issuance in Vietnam, pointing to a positive near-term outlook. 

On the regulatory front, Mr. Vu Chi Dzung, Head of Legal - External Affairs Department, State Securities Commission of Vietnam, noted that Government Decrees 153/2020, 65/2022, and 08/2023 form the first comprehensive legal framework for issuing and governing green bonds: “Given each sector’s unique characteristics, standardizing guidance will enhance transparency and capital access,” he emphasized. 

A crucial step in green bond issuance is third-party evaluation. Organizations like FiinRatings play a key role in validating issuers’ proposed green bond frameworks – boosting credibility and attracting investors demanding high sustainability standards. This validation not only raises issuance success rates but also catalyzes sustainable market growth. 

From an international investor perspective, Mr. Duy Bui, Deputy Head of FI Investments, Climate Finance, responsAbility Investments AG, remarked: “Vietnam is now the second-largest market among the 70 countries we invest in worldwide, underscoring its substantial potential in green finance.” However, he also identified three major barriers: strategic commitment, green impact definition and measurement, and technical capacity for impact reporting. 

Reflecting the issuer side, Mr. Pham Ngoc Khang, General Director of Home Credit Viet Nam, said the biggest challenge in applying sustainable finance today is building an ESG strategy that aligns with operational realities and earns market and investor recognition. 

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Dinh Tho, Deputy Director of the Institute for Strategy and Policy on Agriculture and Environment, Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, noted that the final draft of the Vietnam Taxonomy has been completed and submitted to the Prime Minister for consideration. “Once officially issued, this system will effectively support businesses, including the highly fragmented agriculture sector, by providing a common set of criteria to connect and sustainably develop within global supply chains.” 

Mr. Nguyen Tung Anh, Head of Sustainable Finance Services, FiinRatings, noted that over the past year Vietnam’s green bond market has seen many positive developments, evidencing the domestic shift toward sustainable finance. 

He added that FiinRatings has provided Second Party Opinions for the green bond of Hoa Binh – Xuan Mai Clean Water Limited Liability Company (VND 875.1 billion) and I.D.I International Development & Investment Corporation (VND 1,000 billion) in accordance with ICMA’s Green Bond Principles, and has also provided post-issuance verification for BIDV’s VND 2,500-billion green bond (issued in October 2023). 

Despite these advances, he acknowledged that in 2025, Vietnam still lacks an official taxonomy. However, with a long-term vision, Mr. Nguyen Tung Anh is optimistic: “Once the taxonomy is issued, Vietnam’s green bond market will grow in a more structured, transparent, and efficient manner. Domestic banks—pioneers with experience in prior green financing projects—will have the motivation and capacity to issue green bonds in the near future.” 

FiinRatings is committed to supporting Vietnamese enterprise to enhance transparency, prevent greenwashing, and unlock green capital for Vietnam’s economy. 

• Event materials can be found: HERE 
• Watch the full recording of the webinar at: THIS LINK

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