Vietnam honors 50 transparent listed companies as stock market reaches new milestones

THE HANOI TIMES — Fifty listed companies have earned recognition for excellence in information transparency at the 18th Vietnam Listed Company Awards (VLCA) ceremony held this week in Ho Chi Minh City.

VLCA 2025 maintains three major award categories: Annual Report, Corporate Governance and Sustainability Report.

The annual report category recorded strong growth, with 122 companies joining, up 27% from last year. Of the total, 42 companies participated for the first time, accounting for 34% of entries.

Their annual reports continue to serve as key references for investors, especially foreign investors, when evaluating transparency and growth prospects.

The Corporate Governance category acts as a “competence test” for listed companies. In 2025, evaluators updated criteria to encourage stronger compliance with the latest OECD Principles of Corporate Governance issued in 2023.

One notable change this year is the rise in companies publishing English-language information, which reached 81%. This shift helps foreign investors access and analyze the Vietnamese market more easily.

Organizers strengthened the Sustainability Report category with separate criteria for financial and non-financial companies, added industry-specific indicators and aligned assessments with updated GRI and IFRS S1 & S2 guidelines.

Vu Thi Chan Phuong, Chairwoman of the State Securities Commission of Vietnam (SSC), said Vietnam’s stock market has stayed stable and continues to serve as a vital medium- and long-term capital channel for the economy despite global challenges.

Vietnam remains one of the most active and fastest-growing markets in the region and the world, she spoke at the awarding ceremony on December 3.

According to the SSC chairwoman, the benchmark VN-Index surpassed its previous record and market liquidity reached new highs, with some trading sessions exceeding VND80 trillion (US$3 billion) in value.

In 2025, the market reached several milestones. The KRX trading system went live, raising technological capacity and supporting new products and services.

On October 8, 2025, FTSE Russell announced Vietnam’s upgrade from Frontier Market to Secondary Emerging Market status, a breakthrough that requires deeper reforms.

Phuong said the SSC will keep improving the legal framework, strengthening transparency, promoting international alignment and advancing key government strategies, including the Market Development Strategy to 2030 and the Market Upgrading Scheme.

The State Securities Commission also plans to accelerate digital transformation, improve supervision, upgrade infrastructure and study new products, its chairwoman added.

She said the agency will streamline administrative procedures to support capital raising by businesses while enhancing corporate governance, sustainability practices, training and recognition for strong listed companies.

As of November 30, Vietnam’s stock market reached over US$390 billion in capitalization, equal to nearly 82% of 2024 GDP.

On HOSE alone, listed stocks reached US$310 billion, equal to about 65% of GDP and representing 94% of nationwide listed market value. HOSE now has 50 listed companies valued above US$1 billion, including three exceeding US$10 billion.

Market liquidity remained strong, with average daily trading value around US$1 billion from January to November.

These developments have reinforced the stock market’s role as a vital channel for capital mobilization, helping companies expand, strengthen competitiveness and support national economic growth.