Circular No. 26/2020/TT-NHNN on the issuance of statements and provision of information by the State Bank of Vietnam

CIRCULAR

Regulations on Public Statements and Provision of Information of the State Bank of Vietnam

Pursuant to the Law on the State Bank of Vietnam dated June 16, 2010;

Pursuant to the Law on Credit Institutions dated June 16, 2010; the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Articles of the Law on Credit Institutions dated November 20, 2017;

Pursuant to Decree No. 09/2017/NĐ-CP dated February 9, 2017 of the Government detailing public statements and provision of information to the press by state administrative agencies;

Pursuant to Government Decree No. 16/2017/NĐ-CP dated February 17, 2017 on the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the State Bank of Vietnam;

At the proposal of the Head of the Communications Department;

The Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam hereby promulgates this Circular regulating public statements and provision of information by the State Bank of Vietnam.

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

Article 1. This Circular regulates public statements and provision of information by the State Bank of Vietnam (hereinafter referred to as the State Bank), including public statements and provision of information to the press; provision of information to other agencies, organizations, and individuals.

Article 2. The provision of information by the State Bank to entities as prescribed by the Law on Deposit Insurance and the Law on Anti-Money Laundering shall be carried out in accordance with the laws on deposit insurance and anti-money laundering.

Article 3. The provision of information falling within the category of state secrets shall be implemented in accordance with the laws on state secret protection.

Article 2. Applicability

1. Departments, Bureaus, units, and officers, civil servants, officials, and employees of the State Bank of Vietnam.

2. Credit institutions and foreign bank branches (hereinafter referred to as credit institutions).

3. State-owned enterprises and enterprises with state capital established by the State Bank or where the State Bank is entrusted to represent state ownership in the enterprise (hereinafter referred to as enterprises managed by the State Bank).

4. Agencies, organizations, and individuals provided information by the State Bank in accordance with this Circular.

Chapter II

PUBLIC STATEMENTS AND PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO THE PRESS

Article 3. Persons responsible for public statements and provision of information to the press

Clause 1. Persons responsible for public statements and provision of information by the State Bank include:

a) The Governor of the State Bank (hereinafter referred to as the Governor);

b) Persons assigned by the Governor to regularly perform public statements and provision of information to the press (hereinafter referred to as spokespersons);

c) Persons authorized by the Governor to perform public statements (hereinafter referred to as authorized spokespersons) or assigned to cooperate with spokespersons to perform public statements or provide information to the press on specific issues assigned.

Clause 2. Officers, civil servants, officials, and employees of the State Bank who are not spokespersons or authorized spokespersons shall not speak on behalf of the State Bank when making public statements and providing information to the press.

Article 4. Content of public statements and information provided to the press

Clause 1. Policies, laws on currency, banking activities, and foreign exchange (hereinafter referred to as currency and banking).

Clause 2. Directives and management decisions of the Governor regarding currency and banking.

Clause 3. Information, data, and situations concerning currency and banking.

Clause 4. Information related to the issuance, amendment, supplementation, revocation of licenses for establishing and operating credit institutions, foreign bank branches, representative offices of foreign credit institutions, and other foreign organizations engaged in banking activities; issuance and revocation of licenses for non-bank organizations to provide payment intermediary services; information on the purchase, sale, division, merger, bankruptcy, dissolution, and special control of credit institutions as prescribed by law.

Clause 5. Information about the system of credit institutions in Vietnam.

Clause 6. Information on the operations and finances of enterprises managed by the State Bank in accordance with the law.

Clause 7. Other contents as prescribed by law.

Article 5. Forms of Public Statements and Provision of Information to the Press

1. Publishing the content of public statements and information on the State Bank of Vietnam's Electronic Portal (in Vietnamese and foreign languages); the content, deadlines, and units providing the information are specified in the Appendix attached to this Circular.

2. Organizing press conferences.

3. Making direct public statements or responding to press interviews.

4. Sending press releases, written responses to the press, or through email.

5. Other forms of information provision as prescribed by law.

Article 6. Public Statements and Provision of Information in Emergency and Unusual Circumstances

1. The spokesperson shall be responsible for making full, timely, and accurate public statements and providing information in the following emergency and unusual circumstances:

a) When significant events or issues with substantial social impact occur, or when there are numerous inconsistent opinions in public discourse regarding matters within the State Bank of Vietnam’s jurisdiction that may affect the safety of the banking system;

b) When news agencies or state management agencies for the press request public statements or information on matters within the State Bank of Vietnam’s jurisdiction that have been mentioned in the media or concerning events and issues stipulated in point a of this Clause;

c) When there is evidence that the press has published false information about areas under the State Bank of Vietnam’s management, the spokesperson or authorized spokesperson shall require the relevant news agency to publish a correction according to the law.

2. For information related to multiple agencies where the State Bank of Vietnam is tasked with leading the handling process, the State Bank of Vietnam shall make public statements and provide information in emergencies in accordance with the law.

3. For enterprises under the State Bank of Vietnam’s management, when abnormal information occurs as prescribed in the Enterprise Law and any subsequent amendments, supplements, or replacements (if applicable), the enterprise must promptly provide information for publication on the State Bank of Vietnam's Electronic Portal.

Article 7. Rights and Responsibilities of Units and Individuals in Making Public Statements and Providing Information to the Press

1. Governor:

a) The Governor may make public statements directly or delegate tasks to the spokesperson or authorized spokesperson to make public statements and provide information to the press;

b) The Governor organizes and directs the preparation of information and the statement regime of the State Bank of Vietnam.

2. Spokesperson, Authorized Spokesperson:

a) The spokesperson and authorized spokesperson may represent the State Bank of Vietnam in making public statements and providing information to the press;

b) They have the right to request relevant units and individuals to collect and provide information for regular and emergency public statements as prescribed in this Circular;

c) They have the right to refuse to make public statements and provide information in cases stipulated in Clause 2, Article 38 of the Press Law;

d) They are responsible for making public statements and providing information to the press as prescribed in Articles 4 and 6 of this Circular, and bear legal responsibility before the Governor for the content of their statements and provided information;

e) In cases where news agencies publish inaccurate information that the spokesperson or authorized spokesperson has already stated, the spokesperson or authorized spokesperson has the right to submit written comments to the news agency, its parent organization, or the state management agency for the press, or file a lawsuit at court.

3. Department of Communication:

a) The focal point for implementing regulations on public statements and information provision of the State Bank of Vietnam; providing communication-related information on currency and banking as prescribed; organizing State Bank of Vietnam press conferences and other related press conferences;

b) Collecting information from the press and other sources related to currency and banking, promptly reporting and advising the Governor on measures to address the situation;

c) The focal point for coordinating with departments, bureaus, units under the State Bank of Vietnam, and related units to correct and respond to the State Bank of Vietnam’s opinions according to the law in cases where provided and published information is inaccurate; addressing information affecting public confidence to ensure the safety of the banking system and national monetary security;

d) Coordinating with related units in the banking sector in organizing the publication and distribution of communication materials and publications related to monetary policy implementation or affecting the banking system as prescribed by law.

4. Departments, Bureaus, Units under the State Bank of Vietnam:

a) Cooperating with the Department of Communication to provide information as prescribed in this Circular and the Governor's directives to support the State Bank of Vietnam’s public statements and information provision; bearing responsibility for the accuracy and legality of the provided information;

b) During the drafting and issuance of regulatory legal documents, cooperating with the Department of Communication to advise and propose issues and contents for information provision according to the law.

5. State Bank of Vietnam Branches in Provinces and Central Cities:

a) Organizing the dissemination and promotion of national regulatory legal documents and the Governor's directives on currency and banking in their respective regions;

b) When receiving requests for information from the press related to monetary policy implementation and banking activities beyond the information stipulated in point a of this Clause, State Bank of Vietnam branches in provinces and central cities shall promptly provide information and coordinate with the Department of Communication to ensure comprehensive, accurate, and transparent information provision as prescribed.

6. Financial enterprises under the management of the State Bank of Vietnam and credit organizations shall cooperate with the Department of Communication of the State Bank of Vietnam to provide information related to the implementation of monetary and banking policies and public opinion information concerning the activities of financial enterprises and credit organizations, ensuring accuracy, comprehensiveness, and compliance with the law.

Chapter III

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Article 8. Recipients of Information Provision

1. Party and state agencies, Vietnam Fatherland Front, political and social organizations as prescribed by law or according to the working coordination regulations between the State Bank of Vietnam and these agencies.

2. International organizations to which the Government of Vietnam or the State Bank of Vietnam has committed to provide information, governments of countries under international treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a member, and international agreements to which Vietnam has participated.

3. Other organizations and individuals as prescribed by law.

Article 9. Scope of Information Provision

The scope of information provision includes monetary and banking information as prescribed by the State Bank of Vietnam and current laws.

Article 10. Authority for Information Provision

1. The Governor is authorized to decide on providing information to the recipients specified in Article 8 of this Circular, except for cases stipulated in point a, Clause 3 of this Article.

2. Heads of Departments, Bureaus, and units under the State Bank of Vietnam provide information to the recipients specified in Article 8 of this Circular upon the Governor's directive or delegation.

3. Governors of provincial and centrally-administered city branches of the State Bank of Vietnam:

a) Decide on providing information within their jurisdiction at the request of the provincial or centrally-administered city party committees and authorities as prescribed by law;

b) Provide information to competent state agencies and other organizations and individuals within their jurisdiction upon the Governor's directive or delegation.

4. Financial enterprises under the management of the State Bank of Vietnam and credit organizations shall cooperate with the State Bank of Vietnam Office to provide information related to the implementation of monetary policy and banking operations, and information affecting the banking system to relevant agencies, organizations, and individuals, ensuring compliance with the law.

Article 11. Forms of Information Provision

1. The Governor decides on the form of information provision and assigns a unit to be the main provider of information.

2. The main unit coordinates with related units to prepare the content, submit it for the Governor's approval, and then send it to the recipient of the information.

Article 12. Responsibilities of Related Organizations and Individuals

1. Departments, Bureaus, units, and officials, civil servants, employees, and workers of the State Bank of Vietnam and organizations and individuals in the banking sector assigned to provide information and act as the main providers of information are responsible before the law and the Governor for the provided information.

2. Agencies, organizations, and individuals receiving information from the State Bank of Vietnam are responsible for managing, using, and ensuring the confidentiality of the information in accordance with the law.

Chapter IV

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 13. Effective Date

This Circular takes effect from February 20, 2021, and replaces Circular No. 48/2014/TT-NHNN dated December 31, 2014, issued by the Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam on spokesperson duties and information provision of the State Bank of Vietnam.

Article 14. Responsibility for implementation

1. The Department of Communication is responsible for guiding and supervising the implementation of this Circular and compiling reports to submit to the Governor.

2. Units tasked with providing information as stipulated in this Circular must submit written reports to the Department of Communication before June 15 (for mid-year reports) and before December 15 (for annual reports) for compilation and submission to the Governor.

3. The Director of the General Office, Heads of the Department of Communication, Heads of units under the State Bank of Vietnam, credit organizations, foreign bank branches, and financial enterprises under the management of the State Bank of Vietnam are responsible for organizing the implementation of this Circular./.