Long-term deposit rates down
By Thanh Thuong - The Saigon Times Daily
HCMC – After surging to 14% a year late last week, long-term deposit rates yesterday fell to around 12%.
Westernbank offers the highest deposit rate of 12.5%, down 1.5 percentage points against last weekend, and this rate is only applicable to deposits of 13 months with interest paid upon maturity. Deposits of one year or longer, excluding 13-month term, are given an annual interest rate of 12%.
Meanwhile, Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) quotes the deposit rate at 12% for terms of 15, 18 and 24 months, but depositors can negotiate for higher rates depending on the amount of money. A teller at SCB said this interest rate is down slightly from 13.5% last week.
At other commercial banks, the deposit rates for a 12-month term or above fluctuate between 10% and 12%, unchanged from last Wednesday.
In response to the question as to whether there will be a race for long-term deposit rate hikes after the central bank removed the ceiling rate, Nguyen Hoang Minh, deputy director of the central bank’s HCMC branch, said time will tell.
Still, the central bank’s branch comprehends the deposit rate spikes at the HCMC-based banks and has sent a report to the central bank’s headquarters.
Minh said raising interest rates for long-term deposits is popular at small banks, not in the entire system. However, if these banks maintained their high deposit rates, other banks would have to follow suit to avoid losing their clients, which will end up affecting lending rate reductions.
In the coming time, the central bank will continue to check compliance with regulations on deposit rates at banks and look into why banks are raising interest rates.