In September 2003, the State Securities Commission (SSC), in close partnership with the Asian Development Bank (ADB), issued a 10-year Capital Market Roadmap to build sophisticated capital markets in Viet Nam. The Roadmap outlines a number of critical reforms that focus on the demand and supply of securities, market intermediaries and infrastructure, and the legal and regulatory framework.

The chapter on Implementation Framework details the various reforms slated for the three separate phases of the Roadmap. Phase I was to be implemented by 2006, Phase II from 2007 to 2009, and Phase III from 2010 to 2012. The complete document is linked below. Highlights of the Roadmap include the following fundamental reforms:

Bond Markets

• Develop government bond markets by introducing a primary dealer system, allowing short selling, and developing repurchase markets (Phase I); relaxing restrictions on foreign investor participation (Phase III); and developing markets for government bond futures and options (Phase III)
• Develop corporate bond markets by introducing domestic credit rating agencies, possibly as a joint venture between the Government and a foreign credit rating agency (Phase I); and allowing trading of corporate bonds in the over-the-counter (OTC) market (Phase II)

Capital Market Infrastructure

• Enhance the basic trading platform by improving the market information dissemination system and expanding daily price limits (Phase I)
• Modernize the trading platform by introducing market orders, margin transactions, internet-based trading, and block-trading facilities (Phase II)
• Establish a single independent entity for clearance and settlement, and enhance the function of central custody (Phase II)
• Adopt a uniform securities certificate form and establish the International Securities Identification Number (ISIN) code system (Phase II)

Legal and Regulatory Framework

• Upgrade the legal framework for capital markets by incorporating regulations on unfair trading, and strengthening enforcement of corporate governance principles (Phase II)
• Adopt market-based regulations on public offerings (Phase III)
• Improve information disclosure and strengthen disclosure requirements (Phases I and II)
• Improve market surveillance (Phase I) and improve the regulatory framework by creating a single licensing regime and consolidated legislation for securities (Phase II)�

Viet Nam has a Tax Reform Roadmap for 2006�2010 to amend laws and ordinances to make the legal tax system framework compatible with international rules and practices. Highlights of the Tax Reform Roadmap include applying a common tax level of 30%; and phasing out preferred tax levels of 25%, 20%, and 15%. In addition, a common tax table will be applied to both foreigners and Vietnamese.