Member banks of the Vietnam Banks Association have agreed not to revise up card service fees for now as requested by the association.
A representative of the association told news website Dan Tri last week that the fee collection is following the road map executed since 2012 and within the fee framework set out by the central State Bank of Vietnam. However, the fee hike must ensure the benefits of all parties involved.
Many big banks have recently raised their charges on cash withdrawals from ATMs to VND1,560 per transaction with ordinary cards and VND2,200 with Gold cards. Inter-bank money transfers are now charged VND11,000 per transaction.
Commenting on the recent fee rises at many banks, Dao Minh Tuan, chair of the Bank Card Association of Vietnam, said Vietnam started to offer banking services in 1996. Regulations on services with charges are mentioned in the central bank’s Circular 35 issued in 2012.
According to Tuan, banks were allowed to impose ATM fees from March 2013 at VND0-2,000 per transaction. From 2015 onwards, the fee level could be raised to VND3,000 per transaction.
“Though the fee ceiling per transaction of ATM withdrawal is VND3,000, most banks are still charging VND1,000 per same-bank transaction,” Tuan said.
Following the government’s cashless payment plan, banks have in the past time invested heavily in modern banking services.
Commercial banks’ increased charges of same-bank ATM withdrawal, besides being used to cover costs spent on ATM services, are one of the solutions to reduce cash payments.
Transactions involving domestic cards have picked up from 0.7 percent in 2013 to 3 percent, but up to 80 percent of such transactions are money withdrawals.
http://english.thesaigontimes.vn/59731/Banks-agree-to-delay-fee-hikes.html
