Vietnam Hits New Investment High: FDI Pledges Soar to $28.5 Billion as Global Banks Forecast Near-8% GDP Growth

Hanoi, Vietnam – Vietnam has cemented its status as Southeast Asia’s top investment magnet, reporting a significant surge in foreign direct investment (FDI) and prompting major financial institutions to dramatically upgrade their growth forecasts for 2025.

In the first nine months of the year, Vietnam attracted an impressive $28.54 billion in registered FDI, marking a robust 15.2% increase year-on-year. This capital influx, coupled with strong trade performance, has convinced leading global banks that Vietnam is poised for a near-record economic expansion. Both Standard Chartered and HSBC have recently revised their 2025 GDP growth predictions upward, now forecasting growth of 7.5% and 7.9%, respectively—figures that position Vietnam as a rare bright spot in the global economy.

Dissecting the Record Capital Inflow

For business leaders, the most telling indicator of investor confidence is not merely the commitment of new funds but the expansion of existing projects.⁵ The latest data reveals a critical trend: investors are doubling down on their Vietnam operations.

• Disbursed Capital: Realized (disbursed) FDI reached $18.8 billion through September, an 8.5% rise year-on-year and the highest nine-month disbursement level in five years.⁶ This demonstrates that pledged capital is rapidly turning into operational assets on the ground.
• Expansion Surge: The most compelling metric is the adjusted capital for existing projects, which surged by 48% to over $11.3 billion.⁷ This indicates multinational corporations are deeply committed to expanding their production capacity, reinforcing Vietnam’s pivotal role in the “China Plus One” global supply chain strategy.

The Manufacturing and Processing industry remains the primary destination for this capital, signaling continued momentum in Vietnam’s high-value export sector, particularly in electronics, machinery, and technology components.

Regulation and Growth: Securing the Foreign Investment Wave

This massive flow of foreign capital places immense pressure on Vietnam’s governance and financial infrastructure. The proactive stance of regulatory bodies, such as the new capital market safety rules (Circular 102/2025/TT-BTC), is viewed by investors as a necessary step to secure this growth.

The Ministry of Finance’s recent move to strengthen the financial safety standards and risk management capacity of local securities firms, while specifically incorporating internationally referenced credit ratings for corporate bonds, directly addresses foreign investors’ needs for transparency and reliability.

By simultaneously attracting high-quality FDI and raising capital market standards ahead of its upcoming upgrade to an Emerging Market status by FTSE Russell (effective in September 2026), Vietnam is systematically de-risking its financial environment and offering a high-growth corridor that is increasingly aligned with developed-market expectations.¹⁰ This commitment to both economic openness and rigorous financial supervision is key to maintaining the current strong growth trajectory into 2026.