A store of Momo, a fintech startup. The central bank has founded a committee to boost fintech in Việt Nam. — Photo fintechnews.sg

The governor of the State Bank of Viet Nam has set up a steering committee to boost financial technology, or fintech, in the country.

As per decision 328/QĐ-NHNN, the committee will be in charge of developing programmes and plans and consulting with the governor to create a favourable ecosystem, including the legal framework, for fintech businesses to develop in Viet Nam.

The 10-member committee will have deputy governor Nguyen Kim Anh as its director.

This is among the government’s first efforts to boost fintech in the country, which has a population of 90 million, mostly millennials, who can exploit the huge potential of an internet economy.

Currently, there are just 30 fintech companies in the country, and a majority of fintech start-ups operate in the e-payment domain, such as 1Pay, 123Pay, VinaPay, One Pay and MoMo. The e-commerce sector in Viet Nam and Southeast Asia is expected to see a huge boom in the near future.

Services offered by fintech companies are becoming more diverse, going beyond e-payments into fund-raising, remittances, e-lending and data management. — VNS