SBV: Many accounts and e-wallets are not genuine

Currently, there are many unofficial accounts and e-wallets. This is why many people take advantage of this for illegal activities. According to data just released by the National Bank, by the end of 2023, non-cash payment transactions will reach approximately 11 billion, with a value of more than 200 million VND, an increase of nearly 50% from 2022.

Among them, nearly 2 billion transactions were completed through Internet channels, with a transaction volume of more than 520 billion VND, with a volume increase of more than 56% and a transaction volume increase of 5.80%; the transaction volume through mobile channels exceeded 7 billion, with an amount of more than 490 billion VND. The quantity increased by more than 61%, and the amount increased by nearly 12%.

Among them, the number of QR code payment transactions was close to 183 million, with an amount exceeding VND116 trillion. The number increased by nearly 172%, and the amount increased by more than 74%.

On the contrary, transactions through ATMs tended to continue to decline, reaching about 900 transactions worth about VND 26 billion, a decrease of 8.84% in volume and more than 9% in price compared to 2022.

Payment through NAPAS will also grow significantly by the end of 2023, with transaction volume exceeding 7.4 million and worth approximately VND541 billion, a year-on-year increase of 50% in volume and 13% in value.

In terms of technology application deployment, online account opening will be implemented from the end of March 2021. As of now, there are nearly 27 million active electronically opened payment accounts (eKYC), and there are 12.9 million cards in circulation issued using eKYC.

ATM and POS networks cover all provinces and cities across the country. As of November 2023, the number of ATM machines and POS machines nationwide is 21,014 and 513,550 (increases of 0.6% and 26.89% respectively compared to the same period in 2022).

Regarding e-wallets, as of December 2023, the National Bank has issued licenses to provide intermediary payment services to 51 institutions other than banks that provide intermediary payment services on the market.

As of the end of 2023, the number of active e-wallets was 36.23 million (accounting for 63.23% of the total number of active e-wallets of nearly 57.31 million), and the total funds on these wallets were approximately VND2.96 trillion.

In terms of mobile payment, after two years of piloting, there has been good growth. As of the end of 2023, there are nearly 6 million registered accounts, nearly 70% of which are accounts registered in remote areas and islands; the total number of transactions is approximately 47 million, and the transaction volume exceeds VND2.4 trillion.

It is worth noting that by the end of 2022, more than 77.41% of Vietnamese aged 15 and above have bank accounts.

Mr. Duan said that in order to ensure the security of online payments, the State Bank of Vietnam has signed a project with the Ministry of Public Security to implement the “Population Data, Identification and Electronic Authentication Application Development to Serve the National Digital Transformation Project”. Vision 2030 for the period 2022-2025” (Project 06).

In 2023, coordinate the cleanup of important content such as the data of account holders in the national population database; research, develop and use information data through citizen ID cards embedded with chips; study the use of VNeID identification codes when opening and using banking services.

Regarding the issue of preventing online transaction fraud, the Minister of Payment said that there are currently many unofficial accounts and electronic wallets. This is why many people take advantage of this for illegal activities.

Commercial banks have recorded cases of accounts being bought, sold, rented and borrowed for fraudsters. In the context of increasingly sophisticated high-tech fraud, many people have no awareness of protecting personal data. Faced with this situation, the State Bank of Vietnam has issued a document instructing credit institutions to review and verify accounts with inconsistent documents and study and find solutions to this problem.

>> Momo and Viettel Money e-wallets stop supporting fixed-point cash deposit and withdrawal services