The proposal is included in a submission by the city People's Committee to the People's Council, the legislature, on salaries, benefits, and bonuses for personnel working in the management of the financial center (VIFC-HCMC).

Other top executives and specialists and advisers could be paid salaries ranging from tens to hundreds of millions of dong a month.

Salaries for other employees too could reach hundreds of millions of dong.

The launching ceremony of the Vietnam International Financial Center in Ho Chi Minh City (VIFC-HCMC) in February 2026. Photo from the Facebook page of VIFC-HCMC

The VIFC-HCMC was launched in February 2026 with the goal of developing a financial services ecosystem, attracting international capital and connecting Vietnam's financial market with global markets.

A 2026 Vietnamese salary survey by Navigos Group found that CEOs and general directors of financial services, insurance, and securities companies earned VND184-419 million a month.

At the VIFC-HCMC, the proposed VND100-180 million salary for the CEO is also higher than the VND86-141 million range for marketing and communications directors and department heads, the survey found.

But the proposed VND30-60 million salary for specialists is broadly in line with the VND18-61 million range for experienced specialists in finance and accounting.

The People's Committee said the market-based salary regime is intended to attract personnel with professional expertise, foreign language skills, international experience, and knowledge of international finance.

The management agency is classified as a special administrative body responsible for directly running, licensing, and overseeing investment and financial business activities within the financial center while also carrying out new and complex functions in Vietnam.

Its personnel are currently paid under the existing salary system, but the city government admitted that the highest salary of just VND11.6 million per month is not competitive enough to attract talent in international finance.

The management agency has been using its regular operating budget to pay salaries since February 2026, but with the funding expected to last only another two months, the city government warned that without a special salary and remuneration mechanism being issued in time, 88% of employees face the risk of not being paid salaries, potentially causing resignations.

For the chairperson and vice chairperson of the agency, who concurrently serve in other positions, the proposal is for an additional 50% on top of their salaries.

Government workers deputed to work at the agency will also receive an additional allowance equivalent to 50% of their salary.

The total annual cost of the proposed salaries, benefits, and bonuses is estimated at VND99.648 billion.

It will initially be paid by the city, and once the financial center generates revenues, it will share the cost with the city.