Medium- and long-term lending at Vietnam's 27 listed banks has climbed to VND7.29 quadrillion ($281bn), or 47.3% of total outstanding loans, Vietnam News reported.

The shift comes as the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) loosens rules on how much short-term funding lenders may channel into longer-dated credit, freeing up capacity to finance infrastructure projects at a time when credit quotas remain tight and deposit costs elevated.

Financial statements show total outstanding loans at the 27 banks rose 8.9% from the end of 2025 to nearly VND15.42 quadrillion by the close of the second quarter of 2026. Short-term lending still made up the biggest slice at more than VND8 quadrillion, but its 6.8% growth trailed the banking system's average of 7.73%, pushing its share down to 52%.

Medium-term loans grew 11% to over VND2.19 quadrillion, taking a 14.2% share, while long-term credit expanded fastest at 11.2% to more than VND5.1 quadrillion, or 33.1% of the total. Combined, medium- and long-term loans gained 0.9 percentage points on the end of 2025.

At several lenders the concentration is far higher. NCB topped the group at 72.5%, ahead of OCB at 72.1%. VPBank's ratio held steady at 60%, though its long-term loans surged 40.5% to nearly VND334.7 trillion. VIB and Techcombank reported 59.5% and 59.4% respectively.

The annualised net interest margin (NIM) of the 27 banks improved 16 basis points quarter-on-quarter to 3.15%, driven by loan re-pricing.

"NIM was supported not by a reduction in the cost of funds, but rather through loan re-pricing and the extension of loan maturities," analysts at Yuanta Securities Vietnam Company said.

Circular 25/2026/TT-NHNN lifts the cap on short-term funds used for medium- and long-term lending from 30% to 40%, effective from the start of the third quarter of 2026. Regulators also excluded 18 infrastructure projects run by three private conglomerates, worth over VND750 trillion, from credit growth quotas.