Recent Developments

Lee & Ko successfully represented NICE Credit Information ("NICE CI"), the Vietnamese entity of NICE Information Service, in obtaining a Credit Information License from the State Bank of Vietnam. This license is the 4th Credit Information License ever issued by the State Bank of Vietnam, and it carries particular significance as the first Credit Information License granted to a 100% Foreign Invested Enterprise. With this license, NICE CI has secured the legal basis to become the only foreign invested enterprise in Vietnam authorized to provide credit information services.

Following the filing of the license application around July 2025, the license approval was granted in an unusually short period of time. Since the filing, Lee & Ko Vietnam team has supported the licensing process on a range of practical matters, including analysis of Vietnam law, regulatory trends concerning the credit information business, and IT infrastructure requirements. Throughout the process, Lee & Ko Vietnam team maintained close communication with both the client and officials of the State Bank of Vietnam and responded promptly to the requests.

Vietnamese financial institutions have not yet developed credit information infrastructure or data based risk management systems comparable to those in Korea. NICE CI's successful entry into the Vietnamese market is expected to bring credit information services to the market based on objective data, such as early warning systems (EWS) and fraud detection systems (FDS). This is expected to help strengthen the risk management capabilities and infrastructure of the Vietnamese financial sector going forward.

The Lee & Ko Vietnam team previously advised IBK Industrial Bank of Korea on its application to establish a local subsidiary in Vietnam, as well as Korea Development Bank's Hanoi branch in obtaining its final license. Building on this track record, the Lee & Ko Vietnam team has now also successfully completed this matter for NICE Information Service, securing Vietnam's first Credit Information License granted to a foreign invested enterprise This further demonstrates Lee & Ko Vietnam team's practical expertise, local network, and ability to handle matters swiftly in support of Korean financial institutions expanding into the Vietnamese market.
 

Lee&Ko successfully secured a Confirmation Letter, a critical procedural prerequisite in the licensing process for the establishment of Korea Development Bank's Hanoi branch in Vietnam.

The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has maintained exceptionally rigorous review standards for the establishment of foreign bank entities and branches, citing concerns that the banking sector has an excessive number of banks given the domestic market scale and has experienced delays in efficient restructuring and consolidation. In practice, no additional licenses have been issued to foreign bank entities since Singapore's UOB in September 2017, while the last foreign branch license was granted to Thailand's Kasikorn Bank in January 2021.

Following the initial submission to the SBV in 2019, Lee&Ko Vietnam Team provided comprehensive and persistent local support in Vietnam over a 6-year period. This support included continuous monitoring and analysis of frequently amended local regulations, strategic communication with SBV review officials to assess internal perspective, timely preparation and submission of required documentation, and regular communication of review progress status. Through these efforts, Lee&Ko Vietnam Team ensured the client's successful securing of the Confirmation Letter, which is an essential licensing prerequisite for formal branch establishment authorization. 

This work highlighted Lee&Ko Vietnam Team's exceptional practical expertise, local networking capabilities, and expeditious case management skills. Lee&Ko Vietnam Team successfully overcame the challenging regulatory environment characterized by recent administrative reorganization, departmental consolidation, comprehensive administrative district restructuring that resulted in reduced government personnel, and the conservative policy stance of Vietnamese financial authorities, ultimately enabling the client to secure the necessary results.