Hanoi (VNA) - The Government is on track to se♓ttle its bad debts and cross-ownership, under a scheme to restructure credit institutions from 2011 to 2015.

According to the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), more than 424.1 trillion VND in non-performing loans, or 91.2 percent of the total as of September 2012, was recouped between 2012 and August 2015, bringing down bad loans at lenders to 3.21 percent of total lending in August 2015. The figure is expected to drop below 3 percent later this year. SBV Deputy Governor Nguyen Kim Anh put the success down to the adoption of new standards on debt classification that unlock capital inflows into efficient economic areas. She also called for the involvement of ministries, departments, localities and businesses in the process, and for authorities to devise proper policies. Economist Vu Dinh Anh pressed for more efficient operation of the State-run Vietnam Asset Management Company, a powerful legal entity established to restructure bad debt. He suggested building and operating a secondary debt market accessible by both domestic and foreign investors, and fine-tuning relevant legal regulations. In his view, a large amount of toxic debt was still owned by State groups and corporations that were being restructured. Le Xuan Nghia, former vice chairman of the National Financial Supervisory Committee, acknowledged initial achievements in addressing cross-ownership and market corner behaviours, thanks to the application of international-standard risk management, accounting, financial statements and safety indicator practices. National Financial Supervisory Committee Vice Chairman Truong Van Phuoc hailed better banking management quality, which was possible thanks to manpower and financial support following mergers and acquisitions. Since 2011, 17 credit institutions and branches of foreign banks have shut down through mergers, acquisition or dissolution, Anh said.-VNA