History of formation and development
ESTABLISHMENT
- June 8, 1995: The Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam issued Decision No. 162/QĐ-NH5 approving the establishment of the Central People's Credit Fund (CCF) and Decision No. 200/QĐ-NH5 granting the operational license to the CCF with a charter capital of VND 200 billion and an operational term of 99 years.
- August 5, 1995: The CCF officially commenced operations at No. 40 Hang Voi Street, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi. The organizational structure consisted of 6 departments with a total of 19 staff members. The CCF was tasked with fund regulation across the entire People’s Credit Funds network through deposit-taking and lending activities, ensuring liquidity and payment capacity for the whole PCFs network.
- 1997: The CCF established its first branch in Ho Chi Minh City
TRANSFORMATION
- During this period, the People’s Credit Funds network operated under a 3-tier model consisting of: the CCF, Regional Credit Funds, and Local People’s Credit Funds. In provinces and cities without a Regional Credit Fund, the CCF carried out fund regulation through the respective provincial or municipal branches of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV).
- October 10, 2000: The Politburo issued Directive No. 57-CT/TW on "Consolidating, Improving, and Developing the People’s Credit Funds network", which aimed to "Perfect the organizational and operational model of PCFs towards a gradual transition from a 3-tier model (comprising the CCF, Regional Credit Funds, and Local PCFs) to a 2-tier model consisting solely of the CCF and Local PCFs".
- November 28, 2000: Decision No. 135/2000-QĐTTg of the Prime Minister on the conclusion of the pilot phase and approved the project on consolidating, perfecting, and developing the People’s Credit Funds network.
- March 20, 2001: Decision No. 207/QĐ-NHNN on the "Approval of the Master Plan for the CCF operational network expansion".
- May 2001: Establishment of the CCF Nghe An Branch and pilot handover and as-is merger of the Ha Tay Regional Credit Fund into the CCF Ha Tay Branch.
- From June 2001 to December 2001: Takeover of 20 Regional Credit Funds for merger and the inauguration of 20 CCF Branches.
- June 2001: Hai Duong, Quang Binh branches.
- July 2001: Vinh Phuc, Ninh Binh, Hung Yen branches.
- August 2001: An Giang, Long An, Binh Thuan, Phu Tho branches.
- September 2001: Dak Lak, Tra Vinh, Soc Trang, Lam Dong, Nam Dinh, Thai Binh, Bac Ninh branches.
- October 2001: Thanh Hoa branch.
- November 2001: Kien Giang, Binh Dinh branches.
- December 2001: Dong Nai branch.
- By June 30, 2002: Completed taking over the fund regulation tasks for all PCFs in areas without a Regional Credit Fund, transferring these responsibilities from the provincial and municipal branches of the SBV to the CCF branches.
- January 2003: Establishment of the CCF Hai Phong Branch.
- September 2003: Officially admitted as a regular member of the Association of Asian Confederation of Credit Unions (ACCU).
- 2007: Establishment of the first public non-business unit: The Information Technology Center.
- 2010: Establishment of the CCF Hai Ba Trung Branch (Hanoi) and the CCF Transaction Center Branch (Hanoi).
- 2011: Issuance of the "Bong lua vang" (Golden Rice Ear) multi-purpose card systemwide, marking the initial step toward modernizing operations and banking service provision.
- December 2012: The SBV issued Circular No. 31/2012/TT-NHNN regulating Co-opBank. On December 17, 2012, in Hanoi, the CCF held the Transformation General Meeting to transform the CCF into Co-opBank.
GROWTH
- On March 22, 2013: Co-opBank successfully held its first Member General Meeting.
- On March 29, 2013: Establishment of the Ha Nam Branch.
- On June 4, 2013: The SBV Governor signed License No. 166/GP-NHNN permitting the establishment of Co-opBank.
- On July 9, 2013: Co-opBank held the Grand Opening Ceremony of its operations.
- On January 23, 2014: The SBV Governor issued Circular No. 03/2014/TT-NHNN regulating the Safety Assurance Fund for the People’s Credit Funds network (Safety Fund).
- October – November 2017: Establishment of 05 new branches, including Yen Bai, Ha Tinh, Bac Giang, Gia Lai, and Tay Ninh, increasing the total number of Co-opBank branches to 32.
- November 2017 – July 2018: Successfully launch of the CoreBanking system across the entire Co-opBank system.
DEVELOPMENT
- 2020: Diversification of products and services, deployment of modern, technology-driven banking products, and leadership in digital transformation across the entire People’s Credit Funds network.
- August 2020: Admission as an official member of the International network of inclusive finance institutions - Proxfin.
- December 2021: Completion and perfection of the Co-opBank Brand Identity System.
- 2021: Transition to Co-opBank Napas chip cards and launch of the Co-opBank Mobile Banking digital application.
- March 2022: Approval and implementation of the "Digital Transformation and Information Technology Strategy to 2025, with an Orientation toward 2030".
- August 2022: Development of the Comprehensive Restructuring Plan for the organizational model and operations, linked to digital transformation, aiming to create a breakthrough shift to effectively fulfill mandates and responsibilities, and meet operational and development requirements in the subsequent period.
- October 2022: Launch of the new version of the CF-eBank electronic banking system.
- December 2022: Official membership in the Vietnam Banks Association (VNBA).
- 2023: Comprehensive restructuring of the organizational structure of the Head Office and 32 Branches.
- July 2024: The Law on Cooperatives 2023 and the Law on Credit Institutions 2024 came into effect, marking a significant milestone in strengthening the legal framework and institutionalizing the Party’s policies on developing the cooperative credit institution model in Vietnam.
- 2025: Establishment of 6 additional Transaction Offices, expanding the Co-opBank network to include the Head Office, 32 Branches, and 72 Transaction Offices.
- June 2025: The National Assembly's passage of the Law on Management and Investment of State Capital in Enterprises, including dedicated provisions that clearly establish the framework for the investment, support, and management of State capital in Co-opBank.
- June 2026: The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) issued Decision No. 1266/QĐ-NHNN approving the Master Plan for the Comprehensive Restructuring of the PCFs network and the Co-operative Bank of Vietnam for the 2026–2030 Period, with a Vision to 2045.
