Decision No. 1498/2005/QD-NHNN Issuing the One-Stop Transaction Regulation applicable to credit institutions

DECISION OF THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE BANK OF VIETNAM

Issuing the One-Stop Transaction Regulation applicable to credit organizations

GOVERNOR OF THE STATE BANK OF VIETNAM

Pursuant to the Law on the State Bank of Vietnam No. 01/1997/QH10 dated December 12, 1997 and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on the State Bank of Vietnam No. 10/2003/QH11 dated June 17, 2003;

Pursuant to the Law on Credit Organizations No. 02/1997/QH10 dated December 12, 1997 and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Credit Organizations No. 20/2004/QH11 dated June 15, 2004;

Pursuant to Decree No. 52/2003/NĐ-CP dated May 19, 2003 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the State Bank of Vietnam;

At the proposal of the Director of the Accounting and Finance Department,

DECISION:

Article 1. The One-Stop Transaction Regulation applicable to credit organizations is promulgated along with this Decision.

Article 2. The Standard Measurement Quality Control Department shall be responsible for organizing and guiding the implementation of the Regulations adopted herein.

Article 3. The Director of the Office, Heads of Accounting and Finance Department, Heads of units under the State Bank of Vietnam, Governors of provincial and centrally-administered city branches of the State Bank of Vietnam, Chairmen of Management Boards and General Directors (Directors) of credit organizations are responsible for implementing this Decision./.

ONE-STOP TRANSACTION REGULATION

APPLICABLE TO CREDIT ORGANIZATIONS

(Issued together with Decision No. 1498/2005/QĐ-NHNN dated October 13, 2005

of the Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam)

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Application and Regulatory Scope

1. Scope of application:

The One-Stop Transaction Regulation shall be applied to credit organizations that meet the conditions for conducting one-stop transactions as prescribed in Article 4 of this Regulation.

Article 2. Scope of Regulation

The One-Stop Transaction Regulation governs the following transactions:

a) Cash receipt and payment transactions: including receiving and paying deposits from deposit accounts, savings accounts, bills, bonds, deposit certificates, and other cash receipt and payment transactions.

b) Payment and transfer transactions: payment through settlement accounts, issuance of checks, bank cards; money transfers, foreign currency buying and selling, travel checks; and other payment transactions.

c) Other transactions: shall be applied depending on the level of conditions for conducting one-stop transactions of the credit organization based on the principle of ensuring relevant regulations and the content of related business procedures.

Article 2. Interpretation of Terms

In these regulations, the following terms shall be understood as follows:

1. One-stop transaction: is a method of organizing service provision by credit organizations for customers, where customers only need to transact with one transaction officer of the credit organization and receive results from that transaction officer.

2. Transaction officer: is an employee of the credit organization who directly transacts with customers, responsible for receiving and processing customer needs within their authority in the establishment, control, and approval of transaction documents.

3. Control officer: is an employee of the credit organization authorized to perform inspection, control, and approval of transactions within their assigned responsibility.

4. Transaction limit: is the maximum value of a transaction that a transaction officer is permitted to execute without the approval of a control officer. Each type of transaction has different limits.

5. Cash reserve limit: is the maximum cash balance that a transaction officer is allowed to keep at any time during the transaction day.

6. Treasury department: is the treasury department of the credit organization responsible for organizing cash receipts and payments, valuable documents; transferring and receiving other assets for transaction officers and customers (for cash transactions exceeding the transaction officer's limit).

7. Transaction counter: is the place where transaction officers conduct transactions with customers.

Article 3. General principles in one-stop transactions

Credit organizations implement one-stop transactions based on the following principles:

1. Credit organizations must reform administrative procedures in banking activities while ensuring asset safety and complying with inspection and control principles applicable to banking activities.

2. Credit organizations must organize and allocate labor reasonably and scientifically to meet the requirements of administrative reform and comply with legal regulations in banking activities.

3. Credit organizations must develop specific business procedures for one-stop transactions based on current regulations in banking operations, treasury operations, accounting systems, and meet the requirements for preparing various types of reports as prescribed.

4. Credit organizations must establish internal rules and strictly supervise the working rules of transaction counters in one-stop transactions; at the same time, credit organizations must publicly announce internal rules and sample seals used in transactions with customers.

5. Credit organizations applying science and technology in one-stop transactions must comply with legal provisions related to the business procedures of the type of transaction they carry out. The system of equipment and application software must meet technical standards as prescribed to ensure security, confidentiality, accuracy, and synchronized and objective automatic processing of all related business activities.

6. Inspection and control in one-stop transactions:

a) Credit organizations must strictly control related business operations in one-stop transactions. Every day, the accounting department must perform the verification process (matching transaction documents with daily transaction document lists) to ensure the accuracy of daily transactions. In case of errors, the cause must be identified and promptly corrected.

b) For cash receipt transactions, the transaction program must print a receipt for customers to check and sign confirmation. If the transaction program cannot print a receipt, the control officer must inspect and sign on the receipt before returning it to the customer.

Chapter II

SPECIFIC PROVISIONS

Article 4. Conditions for credit institutions to implement one-stop transactions

Credit institutions shall organize the implementation of one-stop transactions when they meet the following conditions:

1. Regarding physical infrastructure and technical equipment:

a) The transaction counter must be arranged to ensure the safety of assets and facilitate the monitoring of cash inflow and outflow activities of transaction officers. There must be internal regulations and public notices for customers.

b) The system of equipment must be fully connected into a network to update, process, check, control, exploit, and store data securely, accurately, quickly, and conveniently. There must be computer systems and backup data centers.

c) There must be appropriate transaction programs established based on compliance with current regulations for each type of business activity of credit institutions, while being compatible and suitable with other software programs.

d) There must be security measures to ensure the safety and confidentiality of data within the program, access codes to the system, and electronic signatures. The general control system and the control system through computer networks must have sufficient capacity to control operational activities in one-stop transactions, ensuring compliance with regulations, preventing abuse and embezzlement of assets.

2. Regarding rules, procedures, and internal regulations in one-stop transactions:

Credit institutions must establish rules, technical procedures, and internal regulations for one-stop transactions based on detailing the main contents of this Regulation.

3. Regarding staff:

Staff must have good moral qualities, understand and master the regulations on transaction operations and one-stop transaction rules to handle transaction tasks and technical procedures on computers proficiently.

Article 5. Measures for inspection, control, and asset protection in one-stop transactions

1. Cash transaction limits and daily reserve fund limits for transaction officers:

a) Transaction limits and daily reserve fund limits assigned to transaction officers must be commensurate with their level and capability and the types of transactions they are authorized to perform, while also aligning with the credit institution's ability to control to ensure asset safety.

b) Transactions exceeding the limit must be monitored and approved by supervisors before execution. Cash transactions exceeding the transaction limit must be handled by the treasury department.

2. Management of daily cash reserves, valuable papers, and other assets handed over to transaction officers for one-stop transactions:

a) At the start of the day, transaction officers must receive cash, valuable papers, and other assets from the treasury department according to the credit institution's regulations to conduct transactions with customers. During the transaction process, if the transaction officer's daily reserve exceeds the daily reserve limit, the credit institution must transfer the excess back to the treasury department and replenish additional reserves if the balance falls below the specified limit. At any point during the transaction day, the actual daily reserve balance of the transaction officer must match the cash balance on the accounting ledger.

b) At the end of the day, all transaction officers' daily reserve balances must be transferred back to the treasury department along with printed reports, ensuring that there is no remaining cash at the end of the transaction day.

3. Advance payment and settlement of advances:

All cash, valuable papers, and other assets temporarily provided and given to transaction officers at the start of the day must be controlled, reconciled, and settled at the end of the transaction day. The handling, storage, and transportation of cash and valuable papers between transaction officers and the treasury department must follow the regulations concerning treasury operations. In cases where cash is exchanged in sealed packages at the end of the transaction day, transaction officers are not allowed to receive the same sealed package they submitted the previous day at the start of the next day.

4. Hierarchical authority and responsibility allocation in processing and controlling emerging transactions in one-stop transactions:

Credit institutions must allocate hierarchical authority and clearly define the rights and responsibilities of participants in one-stop transactions. Hierarchical allocation must ensure safety and comply with legal regulations.

5. Provision of other means and equipment to ensure safety such as cameras to monitor activities at transaction points.

6. Documents and seals provided to customers must be printed from specialized printers. Printers for documents and other printers connected to the computer system in one-stop transactions must be closely monitored and managed to prevent misuse.

Article 6. Accounting vouchers in one-stop transactions

Accounting vouchers in one-stop transactions include two types: vouchers presented by customers and vouchers prepared by transaction officers according to the prescribed models of credit organizations for each business process in one-stop transactions (pre-printed vouchers in books and/or printed by computers). Accounting vouchers in one-stop transactions must comply with current regulations on accounting voucher systems and the provisions of this Regulation.

1. Preparing accounting vouchers:

a) Customer transaction vouchers: based on papers and vouchers (already checked for legality and validity) presented by customers, transaction officers shall enter data into the system and print vouchers according to the credit organization's regulations for each corresponding business process. Vouchers prepared by transaction officers must be fully printed with all information about the transaction before being transferred to relevant departments or returned to customers.

b) At the end of the day, transaction officers must prepare a list of customer transaction vouchers for the day according to the procedures and formats prescribed by the credit organization.

2. Controlling vouchers:

a) For transactions within the limit: the transaction officer is both the preparer and the controller of the vouchers, and only one signature of the transaction officer is required on the vouchers.

b) For transactions exceeding the limit and transactions requiring approval from authorized persons: the vouchers must be reviewed and controlled by a controller. These vouchers must have signatures of the voucher preparer (transaction officer) and the voucher controller (controller) and/or signatures of authorized levels according to the credit organization's classification.

c) For the daily list of transaction vouchers of the transaction officer: the transaction officer and controller must verify and reconcile the daily list of transaction vouchers with customer transaction vouchers and those of the credit organization (if any) to ensure accuracy and correct accounting entries. The list must contain full signatures of the transaction officer and the controller.

3. Circulation, preservation, and storage of accounting vouchers:

Daily, all accounting vouchers (including ledger entries and original vouchers attached) including daily transaction lists after being checked, controlled, and reconciled by relevant departments must be centrally circulated to the general accounting department for re-checking, controlling, preserving, and storing accounting vouchers according to current regulations. The circulation of vouchers is detailedly guided by credit organizations for specific business processes.

Article 7. Rights and responsibilities of participants in one-stop transactions

1. For the General Director (Director):

a) Rights:

- To classify and delegate authority to participants in the one-stop transaction process. To set transaction limits for each transaction officer.

- To be provided with security codes to perform functions within their authority in controlling and approving (signing) vouchers, or to authorize others to perform these rights on machines and paper according to regulations.

b) Responsibilities:

- To bear full legal responsibility for losses occurring when implementing one-stop transactions at the unit.

- To establish one-stop transaction regulations and business processes in one-stop transactions. To guide the implementation of one-stop transactions at the unit according to regulations and to check compliance with one-stop transaction regulations.

- To control the legality and validity of vouchers that require signatures of approvers according to regulations. Periodically or unexpectedly, to review and adjust transaction limits for each transaction officer to suit the operational situation of the unit.

- To absolutely keep secret security codes and electronic signatures provided; regularly change them to prevent theft, abuse, embezzlement, and appropriation of credit organization and customer assets; to bear full legal responsibility for losses caused by loss or disclosure of security codes and electronic signatures provided.

2. For the Controller:

a) Rights:

- To review and approve transactions exceeding the transaction officer's limit and other transactions according to the classification and delegation of authority by the General Director (Director).

- To sign and confirm on the transaction officer's daily list of transaction vouchers.

b) Responsibilities:

- To strictly follow the contents prescribed in the one-stop transaction process.

- To bear responsibility for checking the legality and validity of daily transaction vouchers executed by transaction officers according to their authority; simultaneously, to reconcile and check the accuracy between daily transaction vouchers executed by transaction officers and the transaction officer's daily transaction list.

- To absolutely keep secret security codes and electronic signatures according to regulations and to bear full responsibility before the General Director (Director) and the law for losses caused by loss or disclosure of security codes and electronic signatures.

3. For the Transaction Officer:

a) Rights:

- The transaction officer is provided with security codes to perform tasks within their authority in preparing, controlling, and approving (signing) vouchers.

- The transaction officer has the right to handle and bear full responsibility for losses occurring in transactions within their transaction limit. Transactions exceeding the limit must be approved by the controller according to regulations before execution.

b) Responsibilities:

- The transaction officer is responsible for guiding customers to execute transactions, checking the legality and validity of vouchers, and the accuracy of the content of assigned transactions.

- The transaction officer must comply with and correctly perform assigned tasks, verifying the consistency between actual generated vouchers, actual cash balances, and system records.

- The transaction officer must absolutely keep secret provided security codes and electronic signatures according to regulations and to bear full responsibility before the General Director (Director) and the law for losses caused by loss or disclosure of security codes and electronic signatures.

- Adhere strictly to the procedures for receiving and counting money with the treasury department and customers. In cases where the actual cash balance exceeds or falls short of the limit, the transaction officer must report to comply with the credit institution's regulations on cash limits. At the end of the day, they must reconcile to ensure that the actual cash balance matches the recorded amount in the accounting books, and transfer the entire remaining balance to the treasury department.

4. For the treasury department:

a) Rights:

The treasury department has the right to check the cash limit of transaction officers in accordance with the regulations.

b) Responsibilities:

- The treasury department is responsible for ensuring absolute safety of the funds and assets under its management, adhering to the rules and principles governing the receipt and delivery of funds and assets, and ensuring that the actual cash balance matches the records in the accounting books.

- Each day, the treasury department temporarily advances funds to transaction officers to carry out transactions as prescribed. During the transaction process, the treasury department recovers excess cash balances from transaction officers or replenishes their cash if it is below the prescribed limit. At the end of the day, the treasury department must transfer the entire remaining balance of transaction officers back to its own managed fund.

Article 8. Prohibited Acts

1. Failure to comply with the provisions of the one-stop transaction charter and one-stop transaction procedures.

2. Attempting to exploit, intrude upon, or improperly use the one-stop transaction program, intentionally destroying or disclosing security codes and electronic signatures used in one-stop transactions.

3. Altering, forging, or modifying related electronic data in one-stop transactions to conceal violations of the law.

Article 9. Handling Violations

Any violation of the provisions in one-stop transactions will be subject to administrative penalties, material compensation, or criminal liability, depending on the nature and severity of the violation, as stipulated by law.

Chapter III

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 10. Implementation Organization

1. The General Director (Director) of credit institutions shall establish and promulgate the charter, operational procedures, and internal regulations for one-stop transactions applicable at their units based on the provisions of this Charter.

2. The State Bank Inspectorate is responsible for supervising and inspecting the implementation of one-stop transaction regulations at credit institutions.

Article 11. Amendment and Supplement to the Charter

Amendments and supplements to this Charter shall be decided by the Governor of the State Bank./.