Saigon Thuong Tin Commercial Bank (Sacombank) last Friday inked a contract to borrow US$50 million from Cathay United Bank to secure capital for provision of medium and long-term loans.

Phan Huy Khang (L), vice chairman and general director of Sacombank, and Chang-Ken Lee, general director of Cathay United Bank, at the MoU signing ceremony.

With a solid foundation and experience in Vietnam and Indochina, Sacombank has become the first Vietnamese bank to take out the US$50-million loan from Cathay United Bank – a leading bank in Taiwan, said Phan Huy Khang, vice chairman and general director of Sacombank.

Both sides will also cooperate to conduct market surveys, exchange information and get involved in investment and trade activities. The two banks will help their customers learn about laws and investment environments in Vietnam, Taiwan, Cambodia and Laos.

Sacombank will coordinate with Cathay United Bank to provide banking products and services, organize seminars to share experiences in manpower management, recruitment and tax issues.

As a large bank in Vietnam, Sacombank is experienced in retail banking. The lender is in a merger deal with Southern Bank and when the merger is completed, its total assets, network and operations would expand tremendously.

Meanwhile, Cathay United Bank looks to become one of the best banks in Asia, so it is expanding operations in Southeast Asia, especially Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. As Sacombank also has similar markets, the cooperation between both sides is expected to flourish, Tsu-Pei Chen, chairman of Cathay United Bank, said at a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signing ceremony in Taiwan.

Chang-Ken Lee, general director of Cathay United Bank, said Sacombank is a pioneering banking institution with great achievements in many aspects. Sacombank’s development strategy has enabled the bank to become one of the best banks in Vietnam.

“With a vision to become a leading bank in Asia, we continue expanding our presence in China and

Customers transact at a branch of Sacombank

Southeast Asia. Now, Cathay United Bank is present in nine of 10 ASEAN countries. Especially in Vietnam, we have served our customers since 2000. With the reinforcement of our platform in recent years, we are confident that we can deliver better services to our customers’’, Lee said.

Cathay United Bank is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cathay Financial Holding Company, the largest financial holding company in Taiwan. The bank is a full-service bank serving consumers and businesses with over 100 domestic branches, 10 overseas branches and several representative offices in China, Malaysia, Singapore and the U.S.

For corporate clients, the bank offers a complete line of products and services while its experienced staff members are committed to giving them support. For consumers, the bank offers different consumer banking products to meet financial needs of individuals as well as families.

Cathay United Bank also builds bridges between banking, insurance, trust and securities services through its parent firm and affiliated companies.

SGT