The State Bank of Vietnam has licensed South Korea’s Kookmin Bank to open a branch in Hanoi, the government said on Tuesday. The branch has a chartered capital of $35 million and the contract runs for 99 years, the government said in a statement.
South Korea is the largest source of foreign direct investment in Vietnam and the Southeast Asian country’s second largest trading partner.
KB Kookmin Bank, South Korea’s largest retail lender, said Wednesday it will carry out a voluntary retirement program for workers subject to the wage peak system.
The bank will pay the equivalent of between 27 and 36 months of salary to those who are eligible for the retirement program, the lender said. An agreement was made between the labor and the management.
The workers subject to the wage peak system starting from next year can apply for the program. Under the system, employees are supposed to get less pay from the age of 55 to the retirement age of 60.
Major banks in South Korea have made a series of job cuts in recent years to reduce costs and buttress their bottom lines. KB Kookmin Bank has carried out the program annually since 2015.