Decree No. 83/2023/ND-CP amending and supplementing certain articles of Decree No. 95/2018/ND-CP dated June 30, 2018, of the Government on the issuance, registration, custody, listing, and trading of government debt instruments on the securities market.

DECREE

Amending and supplementing some articles of Decree No. 95/2018/NĐ-CP dated June 30, 2018 of the Government on the issuance, registration, custody, listing, and trading of government debt instruments on the securities market

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the State Administration dated June 19, 2015; the Law amending and supplementing certain articles of the Law on Organization of the State Administration and the Law on Organization of Local State Administration dated November 22, 2019;

The Government promulgates this Decree amending and supplementing some articles of Decree No. 95/2018/NĐ-CP dated June 30, 2018 of the Government on the issuance, registration, custody, listing, and trading of government debt instruments on the securities market.

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Article 1. Amending and supplementing some articles of Decree No. 95/2018/NĐ-CP dated June 30, 2018 of the Government on the issuance, registration, custody, listing, and trading of government debt instruments on the securities market

Pursuant to the State Budget Law dated June 25, 2015;

Pursuant to the Public Debt Management Law dated November 23, 2017;

Pursuant to the Securities Law promulgated on November 26, 2019;

At the proposal of the Minister of Finance;

1. Amending and supplementing Clause 5 of Article 15 as follows:

"5. Determination of the auction results shall be carried out according to the unit price bidding method."

2. Amending and supplementing Point a of Clause 3 of Article 16 as follows:

"a) Based on the requirements of each guarantee issuance period, the conditions of the regular guarantor organization as stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article, the State Treasury selects the regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization for each guarantee issuance period in accordance with the provisions of Clause 4 of this Article."

3. Supplementing Clause 4 of Article 16 as follows:

"4. Procedure for selecting the regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization

a) When there is a need to issue bonds through the guarantee issuance method, the State Treasury announces the plan for organizing the guarantee issuance on the website of the Ministry of Finance, the State Treasury, and the Securities Trading Center for organizations to register to participate as the regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization. The announcement includes:

Information about the expected guarantee issuance period: Conditions and basic terms of the bond (currency of issuance, term, face value, principal repayment method, interest payment method); the expected volume of bonds to be issued; interest rate orientation for each issuance term; the expected issuance time, issuance method; the expected negotiation and signing time of the guarantee contract;

Information on the selection of the regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization: Conditions and standards of the regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization implemented in accordance with the provisions of Clause 2 of this Article; deadline and location for receiving applications to become the regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization.

b) Organizations that meet the conditions and have the desire to become the regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization submit sealed application documents directly to the State Treasury or send them via postal service to the address announced by the State Treasury. The application documents include:

Application form to become the regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization according to the model specified in Model No. 05 attached to this Decree;

Proposal for the bond issuance guarantee plan with basic contents: Forecast of the bond market situation and the ability to issue bonds through the guarantee method; implementation plan for the guarantee issuance period (expected members of the guarantee consortium, methods, time to implement, expected volume, issuance interest rate), proposed issuance guarantee fee; commitments of the regular guarantor organization;

Documents proving compliance with the conditions to become the regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization including: certified copy of the business registration certificate, establishment and operation permit or equivalent legal documents (certified copies from the original book, certified copies by competent state authorities or uncertified copies presented together with the original for verification); documents proving the experience of the organization in the securities guarantee field.

c) After the application submission period ends, the State Treasury establishes an unsealing committee to evaluate and select the regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization based on the conditions and bond issuance guarantee plan.

d) Within a maximum of 15 working days from the end of the application submission period to become the regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization, the State Treasury notifies the selection results in writing to the applying organizations and publishes them on the websites of the Ministry of Finance, the State Treasury, and the Securities Trading Center.

đ) The State Treasury and the regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization agree on the content and sign the principle contract for implementing the bond issuance guarantee period according to the model guided by the Ministry of Finance. The principle contract serves as the basis for the regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization to choose the bond issuance guarantor/synthetic bond issuance guarantor.

e) The regular guarantor organization/synthetic guarantor organization reports to the State Treasury according to the model guided by the Ministry of Finance for the State Treasury's approval of the list of bond issuance guarantors/synthetic bond issuance guarantors."

4. Amending and supplementing Article 17 as follows:

"Article 17. Issuance of individual government bonds

1. Individual issuance is the direct sale of government bonds to individual buyers or the selection of commercial banks, foreign bank branches as distribution agents and settlement agents for government bonds (hereinafter referred to as distribution agents) for individual buyers.

2. The State Treasury builds an individual issuance plan for government bonds and reports it to the Ministry of Finance for approval. The individual issuance plan includes the following basic contents:

a) Buyer of the bond;

b) Expected issuance volume;

c) Term of the bond;

d) Expected interest rate;

e) Expected issuance time;

f) Expected form of individual issuance (direct issuance by the State Treasury or selection of distribution agents)."

3. The Ministry of Finance approves the individual issuance plan for government bonds according to the contents stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article.

e) Projected form of individual issuance (State Treasury directly issues or selects a distribution agent).

3. The Ministry of Finance approves the individual issuance plan for government bonds in accordance with the contents stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article.

4. On the basis of the individual issuance plan approved by the Ministry of Finance, the State Treasury shall organize its implementation. In cases where a distributor is selected, the selection and signing of contracts with distributors shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Clause 5 and Clause 6 of this Article.

5. Conditions for becoming a distributor:

a) Commercial banks and foreign bank branches established and operating legally in Vietnam, possessing the function of providing agency services for the issuance of government bonds in accordance with the Law on Credit Institutions and guidelines issued by the State Bank of Vietnam;

b) Having a network of operations that meets the requirements for the distribution and settlement of government bonds;

c) Having a distribution and settlement plan for government bonds that satisfies the requirements of the issuing entity for each issuance period.

6. Process for selecting distributors:

a) When there is a need to issue government bonds through distributors under the individual issuance method, the State Treasury shall announce the issuance organization plan on the websites of the Ministry of Finance, the State Treasury, and the Securities Trading Center for commercial banks and foreign bank branches to register their participation as distributors. The announcement content includes:

Information about the proposed bond issuance: conditions and basic terms of the bond (currency of issuance, term, face value, principal repayment method, interest payment method); expected issuance volume of bonds; expected issuance time, issuance method;

Information on the selection of distributors: conditions for distributors as stipulated in Clause 5 of this Article; deadline and location for receiving registration applications for distributors.

b) Organizations meeting the conditions set forth in Clause 5 of this Article and wishing to become distributors shall submit sealed registration files directly at the State Treasury or send them via postal service to the address specified in the State Treasury's announcement. The registration file includes:

A distributor registration application form according to Form No. 06 attached to this Decree;

A distribution and settlement plan for government bonds including: market bond situation forecast and bond distribution capability; plans for bond distribution and settlement; proposed distribution and settlement fees;

Documents proving compliance with the conditions to become a distributor include: copies of the Business Registration Certificate, Establishment and Operation Permit, or equivalent legal documents (copies certified from original books, certified copies by competent state authorities, or uncertified copies presented together with originals for verification); information on the operational network system and infrastructure to ensure bond distribution and settlement as required by the State Treasury.

c) After the registration file submission period ends, the State Treasury shall establish a committee to open sealed files and organize the evaluation and selection of one or more organizations as distributors based on the conditions and distribution and settlement plans for government bonds.

d) Within a maximum of 15 working days from the end date of the distributor registration application submission, the State Treasury shall notify the selection results in writing to the registering organizations and publish them on the websites of the Ministry of Finance, the State Treasury, and the Securities Trading Center.

đ) The State Treasury shall sign a distribution and settlement contract with the distributor according to a model guided by the Ministry of Finance. The distribution and settlement contract serves as the basis for confirming the rights and obligations of the distributor and the State Treasury.

e) The distributor is responsible for organizing the implementation of distribution and settlement activities for government bonds in accordance with the signed contract with the State Treasury."

5. Amend and supplement Clause 2 of Article 22 as follows:

"2. Based on the national budget's funding needs, the Ministry of Finance shall take the lead and coordinate with the State Bank of Vietnam to develop a proposal for issuing government bonds denominated in freely convertible foreign currencies in the domestic market for approval by the Prime Minister. The proposal shall include the following main contents:

a) Purpose of issuance;

b) Issuance volume;

c) Bond conditions and terms: term, face value; currency of issuance and bond repayment; issuance interest rate;

d) Bond issuance method (auction, guarantee, or individual issuance);

đ) Purchasers of bonds as prescribed in this Decree and laws on foreign exchange management;

e) Registration, custody, and trading."

6. Amend and supplement Clause 3 of Article 22 as follows:

"3. Based on the approved foreign currency bond issuance proposal by the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Finance shall organize the issuance of foreign currency bonds."

7. Amend and supplement Clause 1 of Article 24 as follows:

"1. The Ministry of Finance shall develop a plan to repurchase debt instruments before maturity and submit it for approval by the Prime Minister in the annual borrowing and repayment plan or in a separate debt restructuring proposal. The content submitted to the Prime Minister includes:

a) Purpose of repurchase;

b) Volume and conditions, terms of debt instruments expected to be repurchased;

c) Source of repurchase;

d) Repurchase method;

đ) Expected time frame for implementation and related costs."

8. Amend and supplement Clause 1 of Article 25 as follows:

"1. The Ministry of Finance shall develop a plan to swap debt instruments before maturity and submit it for approval by the Prime Minister in the annual borrowing and repayment plan or report in a separate debt restructuring proposal. The content submitted to the Prime Minister includes:

a) Purpose of swap;

b) Volume, conditions, terms of debt instruments expected to be issued for swap against existing circulating debt instruments;

c) Swap method;

d) Expected time frame for implementation and related costs."

Article 2. Repeal certain Clauses and replace phrases in Decree No. 95/2018/NĐ-CP dated June 30, 2018 of the Government on the issuance, registration, custody, listing, and trading of government debt instruments on the securities market.

1. Repeal Clause 3 of Article 3 and Clause 3 of Article 25.

2. Replace the phrase "Vietnam Securities Depository Center" with the phrase "Vietnam Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation" in Clause 1 of Article 2, Clause 2 of Article 13, Article 18, and Clause 4 of Article 22.

Article 3. Implementation Provisions

1. This Decree takes effect from January 15, 2024.

2. Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government agencies, and chairpersons of provincial people's committees directly under the central government are responsible for implementing this Decree./.