Vietnam’s digital financial services market has expanded alongside rising smartphone usage, wider acceptance of cashless payments and sustained demand for short-tenor credit. This expansion has drawn in commercial banks, licensed finance companies and payment platforms, each operating under different regulatory permissions and balance-sheet structures.

As participation has widened, regulatory scrutiny has increased, particularly around consumer protection, lending practices and funding stability. These considerations have influenced how institutions assess growth, shifting attention from scale alone to questions of portfolio quality, liquidity management and profitability.

TNEX operates within this environment as a licensed finance company with a fully digital operating model. Unlike commercial banks, it does not maintain a branch network or offer a full suite of banking services. Unlike payment platforms, it is permitted to extend credit directly and manage loan portfolios on its own balance sheet.

The company’s operating scope therefore sits between traditional banking and platform-based financial services. Its activities are defined by regulatory permissions, funding sources and the economics of small-ticket consumer and merchant lending rather than by attempts to build a broad financial ecosystem.

TNEX CEO Nguyen The Minh discussed how these constraints influence lending decisions, funding structure, risk management and profitability, focusing on observed practices and reported metrics rather than projected outcomes.

Market role and operating scope

Minh said traditional banks in Vietnam tend to prioritise customers with stable income profiles, longer credit histories and higher balances. As a result, access to formal credit remains uneven for many consumers and business owners, particularly those with irregular income or limited collateral.

He also said payment platforms and e-wallets have achieved wide reach but are limited by regulation in their ability to lend independently. These platforms typically rely on partnerships with licensed financial institutions when offering credit products, shaping both pricing and risk allocation.

Minh said TNEX extends credit directly as a licensed finance company while relying on a digital distribution model rather than physical branches. This allows the company to participate directly in lending while maintaining a lower operating cost base.

He explained that TNEX works with partners that already have established customer bases rather than attempting to build a proprietary ecosystem. These partnerships provide access to users and transaction data without requiring large upfront investment in customer acquisition.

Minh said operating in this way requires alignment with partners and limits direct control over the full customer relationship. He said these conditions are inherent to the model under which the company operates and are managed through defined roles and risk boundaries.

Customer base and activity

TNEX reported 3.4 million registered users at the end of 2024 and 3.9 million users by June 2025. Management estimates that registered users could reach around 4.5 million by the end of 2025.

Minh said registered users alone are not a sufficient measure of performance. He distinguished between users who register and customers who actively borrow and repay loans, noting that conversion and repayment behaviour are more relevant to portfolio outcomes.

He said TNEX serves individual consumers as well as merchants and small business owners. According to Minh, merchant customers typically seek short-tenor credit linked to cash-flow needs rather than long-term borrowing.

He said demand from merchants remains strong, particularly among those with limited access to bank credit. Lending to this segment is structured around relatively small ticket sizes, which affects both portfolio diversification and servicing costs.

Minh said payment and account features support engagement and data collection, while lending remains the primary source of revenue for the business. Transaction activity is therefore treated as an enabler rather than a standalone profit centre.

Funding sources and balance-sheet structure

Minh said funding and liquidity management have become more significant considerations as lending activity has expanded. TNEX accepts deposits from customers and merchants and also accesses institutional funding.

He said reliance on retail deposits alone would expose the business to volatility, particularly given the small balances typically held by its customer base and the transactional nature of many accounts.

Minh said TNEX has received approximately VND 1 trillion (about $39 million) in funding support from its parent, Maritime Bank (MSB). He said this support takes the form of shareholder funding and liquidity backing rather than an increase in registered capital.

He explained that this funding has supported balance-sheet growth as lending activity has increased and contributed to changes in the funding mix over time, reducing reliance on any single funding source.

TNEX reported a loan-to-deposit ratio of around 80 percent in the first half of 2025, with a lower ratio projected for the full year. Minh said maintaining additional liquidity is intended to provide resilience during periods of economic uncertainty.

Lending economics, pricing and risk

Minh said consumer and merchant lending in Vietnam is shaped by small loan sizes and relatively high fixed costs, including credit bureau checks and servicing expenses. These factors influence pricing regardless of distribution channel.

He explained that credit decisions draw on partner data, transaction histories and ongoing adjustments to scoring parameters. Automation supports consistency across large volumes but does not replace oversight.

Minh said collections processes are increasingly automated, with manual intervention applied to higher-risk cases. The objective, he said, is to manage losses while maintaining predictable recovery processes rather than maximising short-term recoveries.

Fee income and insurance distribution

Beyond lending, Minh said fee-based income has become an important contributor to overall performance. In particular, insurance distribution plays a role in diversifying revenue sources.

He said insurance products have achieved high penetration among TNEX customers, with uptake driven by digital distribution and integration into existing customer journeys.

Minh said fee income from insurance contributes meaningfully to profitability, helping to offset the volatility inherent in lending-led models. This reduces dependence on interest income alone.

He noted that insurance distribution does not carry the same balance-sheet risk as lending, making it complementary rather than substitutive within the overall business model.

The contribution of fee income reflects an effort to improve earnings quality rather than to expand product breadth indiscriminately.

Regulatory constraints and portfolio structure

Minh said regulatory requirements shape both the pace and structure of TNEX’s lending activities. Portfolio composition and loan structures are defined by existing rules.

He highlighted regulatory caps that limit exposure to certain segments, affecting how quickly lending portfolios can be expanded even when demand is present.

Minh said operating within these parameters provides clarity, even as it constrains flexibility. Portfolio growth must therefore be calibrated against regulatory thresholds rather than market opportunity alone.

He explained that these constraints reinforce the importance of pricing discipline and credit selection, particularly in higher-risk segments.

Regulatory engagement, Minh said, remains an ongoing part of managing the business.

Corporate lending and partnerships with MSB

Minh said TNEX is exploring participation in corporate lending through partnerships and syndication, working alongside MSB.

He said such arrangements would allow TNEX to participate in larger transactions without taking full balance-sheet exposure, sharing risk with partner institutions.

Minh explained that these structures rely on shared risk, clear allocation of roles and digital processes rather than paper-based workflows.

He said this approach would represent an extension of existing capabilities rather than a shift away from the company’s core focus on digitally originated lending.

Any such expansion, he said, would remain subject to regulatory approval and internal risk limits.

Technology and organisational structure

Minh said automation underpins TNEX’s operating model. Loan origination, approval, servicing and collections are designed to operate through straight-through processes where possible.

He said system stability becomes increasingly important as transaction volumes grow. Ensuring resilience under load is therefore prioritised alongside efficiency.

Minh said artificial intelligence is applied selectively, particularly in collections and customer service functions. These tools are used to improve efficiency and consistency rather than to replace judgement.

He said automation does not remove the need for experienced staff in areas such as risk management and compliance, where oversight remains critical.

TNEX operates with 286 full-time employees. Minh said organisational discipline is required to maintain control as digital processes scale.

A lending model shaped by constraints

The discussion points to a lending-centred operating model shaped by regulatory scope, funding structure and portfolio risk rather than by scale objectives alone.

Growth is assessed through lending activity, repayment behaviour and profitability, with user numbers treated as contextual rather than determinative indicators.

Funding decisions reflect an emphasis on liquidity resilience in the context of small account balances and cyclical borrower incomes, rather than on maximising leverage.

Profitability is supported by a combination of lending margins and fee-based income, including insurance distribution, rather than by ecosystem-driven cross-subsidisation.

As Vietnam’s digital finance market continues to evolve, TNEX operates within clearly defined constraints. The durability of this approach will depend on how effectively lending economics, funding stability and risk controls are maintained under changing market conditions.