The assertion was made at a two-day seminar entitled "Development of capital markets in restructuring the financial system in Viet Nam", held by the National Financial Supervisory Committee (NFSC) with the participation of over 100 delegates including finance managers, researchers, and domestic and international investors.

Speaking at the seminar, which concluded on August 24 in central Nha Trang City, Khanh Hoa Province, Deputy Director of Auditing Services for Ernst & Young Vietnam, Tran Phu Son said businesses needed to make their financial information more transparent to attract investment capital.

Chairman of the National Financial Supervisory Committee Vu Viet Ngoan stressed the need to improve the quality of information, which helps investors make their profitability assessments and create their prospects of companies, especially newly-listed ones, before finalizing their decision to invest or not.

A decision based on a lack of information or inaccurate information would cost investors dearly, though newly-listed companies would suffer immediate loss regarding capital mobilization and an inability to attract strategic investors.

Accordingly, poor prospectuses, especially those of companies with large capitalization, could lead to a decline of faith and public confidence, creating disorder in the finance market.

Le Duc Tho of the Vietnam Bond Market Association (VBMA) said he hopes authorities to allow his association to be involved in market development activities, including developing standard training programs and market conventions.

The VBMA wants to become a centre of corporate bonds specializing in collecting and processing any information regarding transactions and performance in secondary and primary markets, he said.

Vietnam is home to 105 securities companies and 47 investment fund management companies, with more than 700 listed companies with a market capitalization accounting for 40 percent of the country's GDP.