On April 23, 2026, in Hanoi, the Ministry of Finance of Vietnam in coordination with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources of Korea organized the Vietnam – Korea Economic Forum, attracting more than 500 high-level delegates and the business community of the two countries. Attending the Forum, Agribank had the opportunity to strengthen connections and expand cooperation in the context of digital transformation and deep integration.
Enhancing industrial, investment and science and technology partnerships
The Vietnam - Korea Economic Forum 2026 is organized under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Le Minh Hung and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, with the theme "Enhancing industrial, investment and science and technology partnerships". This is a high-level forum to connect policies with businesses, creating a foundation for substantive and in-depth cooperation steps in the new development stage.
Speaking at the Forum, Minister of Finance Ngo Van Tuan emphasized that after more than 30 years of establishing diplomatic relations and especially since being upgraded to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, Vietnam-Korea relations have developed strongly in many fields. Korea is currently the largest foreign investor in Vietnam, and also a top important trading partner, actively contributing to improving Vietnam's technological capacity, production and position in the global value chain.
Sharing at the Forum, Mr. Chey Tae Won, Chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that in the past 30 years, Vietnam-Korea cooperation relations have been constantly expanded in many fields, from economy, education to cooperation between levels of government. The trust between the two Governments and the increasingly improved investment environment in Vietnam have helped the Korean business community expand its operations effectively. In the coming time, the two sides need to focus on high-tech fields such as artificial intelligence, energy transformation - fields that both meet sustainable development goals and open up new business opportunities.
Currently, South Korea is the leading country in foreign direct investment in Vietnam with a total registered capital of over 98 billion USD, accounting for 18% of the total investment capital of valid FDI projects.
South Korea is one of Vietnam's largest trading partners; is the third largest export market and the second largest import market among more than 220 markets with trade relations with Vietnam. In 2025 alone, Vietnam exported 28.9 billion USD to South Korea and imported 60.5 billion USD from South Korea. Total bilateral turnover between the two countries will strive to reach the target of 150 billion USD by 2030 in a more balanced direction.
Agribank realizes connection through specific cooperation
In that cooperation flow, Agribank has proactively transformed connection opportunities into specific actions. Before the Forum, on April 22, 2026, Agribank and NongHyup Bank signed a Memorandum of Understanding, establishing a strategic cooperation framework between the two leading financial institutions in the field of agriculture and rural areas of the two countries.
The agreement is not only a milestone of bilateral cooperation but also a clear demonstration of the connection between Vietnamese and Korean businesses being implemented in a substantive and effective direction. Accordingly, the two banks focus on 5 strategic cooperation pillars. The first is the development of digital finance and digital banking through technology and experience sharing, thereby bringing modern financial services closer to the agricultural and rural sectors.
Second, promote cooperation in sustainable agricultural development, strengthen green finance, high-tech agricultural credit and build agricultural product value chains - a field considered a common strength of both sides.
Third, strengthen corporate customer cooperation, the coordination of support for Korean businesses in Vietnam and Vietnamese businesses in Korea is identified as a priority, along with the possibility of implementing large-scale co-sponsorship projects.
Fourth, cooperation in developing human resources and expanding investment opportunities, especially in the equitization process, is also focused on by both sides to ensure long-term and sustainable development.
Fifth, expanding investment cooperation, Agribank is ready to exchange information with NongHyup to study appropriate cooperation opportunities in the equitization process, based on compliance with legal regulations and development orientations of both parties.
It can be seen that proactively participating and realizing international cooperation opportunities continues to affirm Agribank's position in the field of agricultural finance, while contributing to expanding the development space for Vietnamese businesses in the digital age and global integration.
