Independence is a factor which has a significant impact on auditing quality, especially in the recent times where the marketplace is increasingly demanding transparency. The independence of auditors is assessed based on the main criteria such as the reliability of the audit opinions, the accuracy, truthfulness of financial reports, and the objectivity in the opinions of the auditor. The study investigates the effects of non-audit services (NAS) on auditor independence in emerging economies such as Vietnam. Non-audit services include taxation services, management advisory services and outsourcing internal audit services. Based on previously relevant researches, the authors develop hypotheses and a regression model about non-audit services (independent variables) and audit independence (dependent variable). The research collects data by 5-scale Likert questionnaire. The findings indicate the relationship between NAS and auditor independence. Specifically, the results reveal two main factors that have influence on auditor independence, namely, taxation services and management advisory services. The results of our research can be considered as new findings and can be compared to previous researches in Vietnam, which establishes a new viewpoint about the relationship between the NAS and the independence of the auditor. This result can be implemented for countries or jurisdictions which are similar to Vietnam.

This study examines simultaneous relationships between regulatory capital, risk, and cost-inefficiency for a sample of 30 commercial banks in Bangladesh from 2006 to 2018. To conduct the analysis, we used the Generalized Methods of Moments (GMM) in an unbalanced panel data framework. The empirical results show that there is a negative and significant relationship between capital regulation and credit, and overall risk. It is also evident from the results that the capital adequacy ratio is positively and significantly related to default risk and liquidity risk. Therefore, higher capitalized banks take an effort to prevent more credit risk and promote financial stability by reducing liquidity risk. Results also report that banks have been characterized as inefficient, less capitalized, and high risk. On the other hand, efficient banks are more stable but have a high level of liquidity risk. Besides, from the size of the bank, large banks are defined as having lower regulatory capital, are more risk seekers but stable with higher cost-efficiency. Notably, higher capitalized banks are more profitable and cost-efficient by reducing risk. Finally, this study also provides some insightful policy suggestions to the stakeholders.

The study investigates the asymmetric effect of exchange rate changes on stock prices in Vietnam. We use the nonlinear autoregressivedistributed lag (ARDL) analysis for monthly data from 2001:01 to 2018:05, based on VN-Index stock price collected from Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HOSE); the nominal exchange rate is separated into currency depreciation and appreciation through a partial sum decomposition process. Asymmetry is estimated both in the long-run relationship and the short-run error correction mechanism. The research results show that the effect of exchange rate changes on stock prices is asymmetrical, both in the short run and in long run. Accordingly, the stock prices react to different levels to depreciation and appreciation. However, the currency appreciation affects a stronger transmission of stock prices when compared to the long-run currency depreciation. In the absence of asymmetry, the exchange rate only has a short-run impact on stock prices. This implies a symmetrical assumption that underestimates the impact of exchange rate changes on stock prices in Vietnam. This study points to an important implication for regulators in Vietnam. They should consider the relationship between exchange rate changes and stock prices in both the long run and the short run to manage the stock and foreign exchange market.

The research purpose of the article is to evaluate the effects of the internal control components on the effectiveness of internal control of transport construction enterprises in Vietnam, on the basis of which we made recommendations to contribute to improving the effectiveness of internal control. Sample was collected from Vietnamese medium and large transport construction enterprises, the total number of sample questionnaires sent was 400, 330 filled-up questionnaires was collected and 250 was used for the study purpose. Quantitative research method was used for the study with the help of the SPSS software. The variables in the model are as follows: the dependent variable is the effectiveness of internal control, 5 independent variables are: control environment, risk assessment, control activities, communication, and monitoring. The results of the analysis explain 80.4% variation as a result of the effect of internal control on the Vietnamese transport construction enterprise. All five components positively affect the effectiveness of internal controls in the order of influence, which are: control activities, control environment, communication, risk assessment and monitoring. This study contributes in providing more empirical evidence about the effects of internal control components on the effectiveness of internal control of transport construction enterprises in Vietnam. The study has proposed a number of recommendations to help transport construction enterprises improve control activities and contribute towards improving the effectiveness of internal control.

The shift from elite education to mass education in Vietnam has met the demand for education for everybody as well as for quality human resource talent for an emerging nation. Under the resource constraint, understanding the quality dimensions of education and its priority level is important for effective and efficient policies. This study was carried out using both qualitative and quantitative methodologies to develop quality criteria and a ranking model. Two rounds of in-depth interviews were conducted with fifteen experts in the field, who were rectors, employers, and recruitment specialists to develop the quality framework applied in Vietnamese universities under total quality management (TQM), starting from the input of the senior secondary school leavers, through a teaching process to the output. The first round of interviews were unstructured questionnaires designed to explore the main factors in quality assessment model. The second round affirmed the experts’ agreement on the assessment model. Then, fuzzy logic was applied to rank eight criteria in the quality assessment model into priority order: cost, teaching and administrative staff, leadership, curriculum, student-related factors, internationalization, admissions, and campus. The results are critical for identifying the necessary actions to enhance the education quality and to further research on the optimal quality model.

This study empirically examines the effect of ownership structure on bank diversification and risk-taking behavior. The population of this study is based on all commercial banks listed in Bangladesh. Thirty-two conventional commercial banks were randomly selected from thirty-three conventional banks for this study. Data was collected from the annual reports of the concerned banks from 2000 to 2017. To analyze the data, we had applied the two-stage least squares (2SLS) estimator. The results of the analysis show that ownership structure i.e. managerial ownership, institutional ownership, general public ownership, and ownership concentration have a significant negative impact on bank diversification. On the other hand, institutional ownership, managerial ownership, and general public ownership have a significant positive impact on Z-score, and ownership concentration has an insignificant but positive impact on the Z-score of banks in Bangladesh. Therefore, the study opposes the benefits of diversification and promotes ownership structure which is capable of ensuring better financial stability by reducing the probability of risk. The policy-makers especially, Bangladesh banks should evaluate the fact of this study to issue guidelines on corporate governance, bank diversification, and risk-taking behavior of commercial banks.

Vietnam is the country with the largest animal feed production in Southeast Asia. Domestic animal feed manufacturing enterprises play an important role in animal husbandry in particular and in agriculture in general. However, domestic animal feed enterprises in Vietnam are encountering shortcomings. This paper is conducted to investigate the impact levels of external determinants on business performance of domestic animal feed manufacturing enterprises, including: (i) policy and economic mechanism, (ii) supply-demand of animal feed products, and (iii) nature and level of market competition. We presented a research method, explaining the dependent variable ‘business performance’ and the independent variables. Data were collected from 120 questionnaires from domestic animal feed manufacturing enterprises. Based on these data, we use Cronbach’s Alpha, EFA and run regression model for assessing the impact levels of each independent variable on the dependent variable of business performance of domestic animal feed manufacturing enterprises. The results show that three external determinants including (i) policy and economic mechanism, (ii) supply-demand of animal feed products, and (iii) nature and level of market competition, have positive relationships with business performance. Based on the findings, some recommendations are given for improving business performance of domestic animal feed manufacturing enterprises to ensure sustainability.

Real estate markets play an essential role in the economic development of both developed and developing countries. Investment decisions in private real estate demand the consideration of several qualitative and quantitative criteria. Especially in Vietnam, demand for housing, apartments are rising which has resulted because of the migration from rural to urban areas. This study aims to determine the influencing factors of the real estate purchasing behavior and then recommend a grey Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) support model to evaluate real estate alternatives based on a numerical example in Vietnam. A set of essential criteria are identified based on experts’ opinion, and the proposed determinants are initial investment, maintenance cost, prestige location, distance to interesting places, parking lot, public transportation, property condition, total area size, number of rooms, and neighbors. The subjective weights were obtained by using the Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) model, and the Grey Relational Analysis (GRA) technique is employed to prioritize and rank real estate alternatives. The results reveal that this approach can be useful to make purchasing decisions for many kinds of real estate property under uncertain business environments. These findings indicate that the presented hybrid model has advantages in granting flexibility to the preferences of decision makers.

The objective of this research paper is to study the simultaneous relationship between fiscal decentralization, corruption, and income inequality among Vietnamese provinces. We use a balanced panel data set of 63 provinces/cities in Vietnam in the period from 2011 to 2018. The study used 3SLS-GMM (Three Stage Least Squares - Generalized Method of Moments estimator) and GMM-HAC (Generalized Method of Moments - Heteroskedastic and Autocorrelation Consistent estimator). Empirical evidence shows a strong simultaneous relationship: increased corruption will increase regional income disparities, income inequality, and increase fiscal decentralization. In addition, the results also suggest that an increase in per-capita income will reduce the level of corruption, or better control corruption of each province. The degree of increase in income inequality, which reduces fiscal decentralization, is the same for trade liberalization. All demonstrate that there is a simultaneous relationship between fiscal decentralization, corruption, and income inequality. In a region of high public governance quality, fiscal decentralization positively effects its economic growth. This issue will indirectly increase income inequality between provinces within a country. Our findings imply that a country’s fiscal decentralization strategy should be linked to improving corruption control and local governance effectiveness, indirectly improving income inequality between localities or regions.

Mechanization and automation constitute an essential stage in the production and operation of any company, as one of the determinants of increase in labor productivity and decrease in product price, while significantly contributing to shortening of the lead time. Businesses are, therefore, able to quickly put projects into operation, improving economic efficiency, quality, and aesthetics, which speeds up the national economic growth. For the construction industry to be the most effective, modern construction equipment is a necessity. It is one of the five main resources of a construction project. Thus, effective construction equipment management contributes to the success of a project and benefits the relevant construction companies economically. This paper presents the critical risk factors affecting equipment management and proposes suitable solutions. The questionnaire-based survey with experienced experts in the construction sector on the management of the likelihood and consequence of risk factors revealed thirty-two risks for equipment management in construction companies. These factors fell into six groups: (i) site organization-related risks; (ii) management-related risks; (iii) owner-related risks; (iv) supplier-related risks; (v) legal risks, and (vi) site condition-related and external risks. The results showed that management-related factors contributed to the most significant risks and problems for equipment management in construction companies.

This paper analyzes factors affecting corporate investment decisions in economic groups listed on the Vietnam stock market. The panel data of the research sample includes 39 economic groups listed on the Vietnam stock market from 2009 to 2019. The Generalized Least Square (GLS) is employed to address econometric issues and to improve the accuracy of the regression coefficients. In this research, the investment rate is a dependent variable. Cash-flow (CF), Investment opportunities (ROA), Fixed capital intensity (FCI), Leverage (LEV), Sales growth (GR), Size (SZ), Business risk (RISK) are independent variables in the study. The model results show that cash flow and sales growth have the same impact on investment decisions of economic groups in Vietnam. In addition, investment opportunities have a negative impact on the capital investment decisions of economic groups. The remaining factors include fixed capital intensity, leverage, firm size, and business risks that have a weak and insignificant impact on capital investment decisions of economic groups in Vietnam. The findings of this article are useful for business administrators, and helping business managers make the right financial decisions. Besides, the research results are also meaningful to money management agencies. The authors recommend that the State Bank of Vietnam should maintain a sustainable monetary policy.

The study examines the effect of environmental factors on the international harmonization process of accounting on small and medium enterprises in Vietnam. These factors include legal environment, business environment, and cultural environment. The data is collected by a survey of 100 accountants and 100 auditors on the factors that affects the international harmonization process of accounting. The T-Tests indicate differences between the answers of the accountants and auditors. First, for the accountants, legal environment has the biggest effect on the harmonization process of accounting; while on the auditors, business environment has the biggest influence. Second, while the accountants consider costs higher than benefits in the harmonization process of accounting, the auditors assume that benefits are superior to costs that businesses spend. Third, both the accountants and the auditors indicate that the harmonization process of accounting should not be applied for all small and medium enterprises. From the study results, the author has given a different evaluation method that Vietnam should implement for international harmonization with the required adjustments as per the suitability with the status of businesses in Vietnam. The process of harmonization in accounting practices should not be indiscriminately applied to all the small and medium enterprises either.

In line with the trend of global transport volume which has increased rapidly over the years, internal transportation in seaports is always conducted with high frequency. Thus, there is always much potential for traffic jams as well as high transportation costs and emissions. Many efforts have been initiated to streamline the inter-terminal container transport (ITT) through the development of automated vehicles and equipment as well as using private transport facilities to overcome these limitations. The purpose of this paper to develop a framework to design, analyze, and validate the efficiency of a new ITT system in a port area based on the monorail network and automatic vehicles. First, the number of shuttles and loaders was determined depending on the transport demand scenario. Next, a simulation model was applied to evaluate the system performance as well as gain more insight into the working process of the ITT system. Finally, by setting goals for the performance indicators, the results showed that the system was highly efficient with 100% of the containers delivered to their destination on time. Besides, a series of other performance tracking was provided to provide insight into the system's capabilities.

International payment is an essential part of the economy, which is beneficial to both commercial banks and trading enterprises. Moreover, service quality, which has been a key point of discussion for decades, relates to customer satisfaction. This study aims to investigate the factors influencing international payment service quality at the Join Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) from 2015 through 2019. This research deploys both quantitative and qualitative methods to discuss the effects of these components. Statistical data was examined through different tests, including reliability analysis, correlation, and regression analysis by SPSS 16.0. The authors obtain and analyze 157 valid responses from customer surveys, then by applying an integration SERVPERF and PSQM model, identify five main components: Reliability, Tangibles, Assurance, Convenience, and Responsiveness, which explain how the customer perceives the service quality of international payment activities at BIDV. The results show that these five factors have a positive relationship with service quality, in which, Reliability has the most significant impacts on service quality level. Besides, the findings not only contribute to the literature but also give some practical implications for BIDV to improve its international payment service quality and help them to obtain customer satisfaction in the fast-changing environment.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the determinants of the Operational Self-Sustainability (OSS) of Vietnamese microfinance institutions (MFIs). This research uses both qualitative and quantitative research methods: (i) qualitative research was via in-depth interviews with ten microfinance practitioners, policymakers and researchers; (ii) quantitative research was conducted by using panel data of 34 MFIs in the period 2011-2015 with binary logistics and OLS regressions. Results are as follows: (i) MFIs’ OSS in Vietnam are mainly determined by five key factors: portfolio at risk (PAR>30), capital structure, gross loan portfolio, scope of activities and legal form; (ii) OSS are most affected by legal status (social organizations have better OSS than formal MFIs or programs/projects), location (MFIs focus in one province have higher OSS than working nationwide or just in one district), capital structure (MFIs with more equity proportion have higher OSS); (iii) surprisingly, average loan size per borrower and age of MFIs do not have statistically significant correlation with OSS. The key recommendations are: (i) MFIs should focus on its professionality and increase its equity; (ii) related stakeholders such as State Bank of Vietnam should promote the enabling ecosystem for microfinance development to enhance poverty reduction and economic development.

Disclosure level in interim financial reporting is important for information users to make business decisions. This has received much attention from the information users. The article is aimed at determining the factors of financial ratios, which impact on the disclosure level in interim financial reporting. The authors use the ordinary least squares to test. The sample consists of 418 VN100 over a 6-year period from 2014 to 2019. The results show that there are four factors that positively impact on the disclosure level in interim financial reporting: Enterprise size (SIZE); Liquidity (LIQI); Sales growth (GROW) and Profitability (ROE). The article proposes some policy recommendations to contribute to improving disclosure level in interim financial reporting. Accordingly, State Securities Commission of Vietnam should strengthen the regular inspection of VN100’s disclosure level in interim financial reporting and also should enforce strict sanctions or may consider delisting in cases of listed enterprises with incomplete disclosure. The managers of VN100 need to raise the sense of responsibility of information providers to ensure adequate information in interim financial reporting. Investors should also pay attention to the financial ratios of VN100 such as firm size, return-on-equity, liquidity, and sales growth to get useful information and ensure sound business decisions.

This research focuses on determining the impact of human resource management activities on the compatibility and work results of employees of Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HOSE) listed companies. The paper includes five parts: introduction, literature review, research methodology, research results, and conclusion and policy implications. The data are collected from the survey of 350 listed companies in HOSE, in which 315 survey notes filled with sufficient information are used for analysis. The paper employs both qualitative method and quantitative method. Group discussion of 10 experts is for qualitative research. Quantitative method performs analysis of Statistics, Cronbach’s Alpha, EFA analysis, CFA analysis and SEM model. The results of the research clearly indicate that human resource management (HRM) activities are measured through improving the ability, improving the motivation and improving the opportunity. While compatibility is measured through suitability, connection and sacrifice; whereby HRM activities of ability improvement have a positive effect on the job suitability and connection; HRM activities of motivation improvement have a positive effect on the job suitability, connection and sacrifice; and HRM activities of opportunity improvement have a positive effect on the job suitability, sacrifice and connection; Finally, the job suitability, sacrifice and connection positively affect the work results of employees.

In recent years, the quality of auditing human resources in domestic auditing firms in Hanoi has certain limitations in which professional skills of auditors have not been given adequate attention. The number of customers at local auditing firms is forecast to increase gradually. Therefore, the quantity and quality of auditors need to be improved to meet requirements of the workload. Data for this research were collected through surveying 120 customers of domestic auditing firms in Hanoi on the 5-point Likert scale. Based on the collected data, we employ both qualitative and quantitative methodology along with some tools such as descriptive statistics, Cronbach’s Alpha, T-test and ANOVA to analysis, evaluate and measure the professional skills of auditors in local auditing firms in Hanoi. The results show that the professional skills of auditors in auditing firms include 17 attributes. The majority of respondents show appreciation for the professionalism and professional competence of auditors, while, they think that critical thinking skills and creative thinking skills are still limited and need to be improved. These findings, not only help auditors to improve themselves, but also provide solutions for managers of domestic auditing firms in Hanoi to enhance quality of audited human resources.

The purpose of the research is to identify antecedents of mobile wallet continuance intention in Vietnam. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to collect data from a total of 276 respondents. Partial least squares structural equation modeling was employed for analyzing the data. Five mobile wallet features – mobile application quality, mobile wallet familiarity, situational normality, payment security, and feedback mechanism – are introduced as fundamental elements, which influence customer’ continuance intention to use mobile wallet in Vietnam. The results indicate that mobile quality application and familiarity can significantly influence perceived ease-of-use (PEOU) and perceived usefulness (PU), but situational normality has an impact only on PEOU. PEOU and PU are positively related to satisfaction. On the other hand, payment security and feedback mechanism affect positively customer’ trust. As a result, the positive effects that satisfaction and trust have on electronic wallet continuance intention are confirmed. The findings can be used to advise mobile wallet providers to improve their platform design and services to retain users. As a theoretical contribution, this study combines the Technology Acceptance Model, Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology to investigate the key determinants on continuance intention in the context of electronic wallet in Vietnam.

The study aims to investigate factors affecting enterprise’s satisfaction and loyalty toward the Social Security’s online public services, looking at the case of Thanh Hoa province, Vietnam. This study employs samples with 216 enterprises that use online public system of Thanh Hoa province’s Social Security. The research model is closely linked to the SERVQUAL model developed by Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry (1988). We propose 23 scales that constitute the quality of service, three scales that constitute Customer Satisfaction and three components that constitute Customer Loyalty. This study use the tool of Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), Cronbach’s Alpha test, Confirm Factor Analysis (CFA) and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) in order to address the question of satisfaction and loyalty. The result shows that the factor with the most impact is Reliability, next is Capacity of staffs, Tangibles, Attitude of staffs, and the least impacting factor is Empathy; moreover, the results also show that Satisfaction has a strong impact on Customer Loyalty. The findings of this study suggest that Thanh Hoa province’s Social Security should: (i) strengthen the reliability of online service system; (ii) build capacity for staffs; (iii) develop the responsiveness of electronic transactions systems; and (iv) improve the empathy of staffs.