The decision was announced in FTSE Russell’s interim market classification review published on April 8. The organisation said Vietnam has continued to develop its “global broker” model since last year’s annual review.
Stock trading (Illustrative photo by Hai Long).
Under Circular 08 issued by the Ministry of Finance, foreign investors can now place orders through international brokerage firms, which route trades to domestic securities companies, instead of opening accounts directly in Vietnam. The regulation also reflects progress in removing pre-funding requirements before trading.
“The FTSE Russell index governance board is satisfied with the implementation of the global broker model, a key factor supporting index replication. Vietnam therefore remains on track for reclassification to secondary emerging market status, effective September 21,” the report said.
According to FTSE Russell, Vietnam’s inclusion in global equity indices will be phased in starting in September and completed next year. The initial weighting will be 10 per cent, followed by 20 per cent, 35 per cent and a final 35 per cent allocation, ensuring the transition aligns with market capacity.
Six months ago, the organisation confirmed Vietnam had met all criteria for secondary emerging market status but still needed to pass an interim review on market accessibility for global investors.
Vietnam is expected to account for 0.037 per cent of the FTSE Global All Cap index, 0.024 per cent of the FTSE All-World index, 0.35 per cent of the FTSE Emerging All Cap index and 0.227 per cent of the FTSE Emerging index, all higher than projections released in November 2025.
A total of 32 Vietnamese stocks are eligible for inclusion in the FTSE Global All Cap index, including major names such as Hoa Phat Group, Vietcombank, BIDV, Vingroup and Vinhomes.
The upgrade is expected to attract significant foreign inflows. Several securities firms estimate between USD 6 billion and USD 8 billion could enter Vietnam, while global investment research at HSBC projects inflows could reach as much as USD 10.4 billion under an optimistic scenario, including both active and passive funds.
Analysts at Ho Chi Minh City Securities Corporation forecast passive inflows of around USD 300 million to USD 500 million during the September rebalancing. Meanwhile, experts at SSI Securities Corporation estimate approximately USD 1.67 billion in passive capital could be deployed over three to five quarters, similar to Saudi Arabia’s upgrade in 2019.