Lesson 1: Accompanying with responsibility and kindness

From the story of boss Le Van Binh

Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director of Nga Hai Cooperative Le Van Binh inspects the pollination process of the Ha Den grape garden. Photo by Duc Kien

“Until now, I still shudder when I recall the first years of starting my business. At that time, the only “specialties” here were mosquitoes and leeches. There was no road, no electricity or water. The whole extended family, both sides of the family supported to build a 16-17 m2 wooden frame house to have a place to live, and until now I still keep this house in the middle of the farm as a “relic”. Many months of struggling, raising cows - cows got sick because of mosquitoes, raising goats - goats got eye nerve disease, kept plunging into cliffs and died…” - Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director of Nga Hai Cooperative Le Van Binh in Xuan My commune, Nghi Xuan district, Ha Tinh began the story!

“And for me, the unforgettable moment in my life was August 24, 1993 - when I was the first farmer to borrow 100 million VND from Agribank in Nghi Xuan district. 100 million VND was a huge amount at that time because the largest denomination at that time was 5,000 VND, so it had to be put into 2 sacks to be enough,” Mr. Binh continued.

Along with the huge sum of money was a love affair with Mr. Nguyen Sy Han - Director of Agribank Nghi Xuan at that time. Mr. Binh said that at that time, he returned from the battlefield, his capital was only an upside-down backpack and a burning desire to get rich! But fortunately, Mr. Binh met Director Nguyen Sy Han. Mr. Binh said that at that time, the whole commune government and Agribank Nghi Xuan held meetings over his matter, but in the end, Director Nguyen Sy Han still chose to support him even though "if we don't lend you money, we will lose a communist soldier, but if we lend you money, we don't know when the bank will get the money back. But I believe you can do it, I will lend you money on credit"!

From that 100 million VND, Mr. Binh and his family worked hard to dig, build, cultivate, raise livestock... Three times of gain and loss, four times of being left empty-handed due to natural disasters and epidemics, for decades, Mr. Binh has always had Agribank steadfastly accompanying him... Up to now, Nga Hai Cooperative has a total area of ​​over 100 hectares, of which more than 90 hectares are used for forestry, 10 hectares for fruit trees, livestock and experiential tourism. Nga Hai Cooperative is also the first facility in Ha Tinh and Nghe An to deploy growing melons in greenhouses using Israeli technology, for which Mr. Binh personally hired an Israeli agricultural expert to be directly in charge of the technique with a salary of 2,000 USD/month.

In Ha Tinh, there is no shortage of startup stories like that of Mr. Le Van Binh. But importantly, among those countless “billionaire farmers”, there is always a close association with Agribank Ha Tinh.

Affirming the "heart and vision" of investors

For 32 years of operation, owner Le Van Binh has always had the support of Agribank Ha Tinh. Photo by Duc Kien

It is no coincidence that for many consecutive years, Agribank Ha Tinh has always been in the Top in terms of business performance of the entire system. It is a long journey that each staff member in the Branch must strive to accompany, spread, inspire, and give wings to the development of the "Tam Nong" area. The start-up story of Mr. Le Van Binh is a testament to the perseverance and strategic vision of Agribank.

Just looking at the latest reported figures: as of March 17, 2025, the total capital of the Branch reached 24,100 billion VND, an increase of 800 billion VND compared to the beginning of the year, equivalent to an increase of 3.5% and reaching 56% of the plan assigned by the Central Government in 2025. Outstanding loans reached nearly 17,500 billion VND, an increase of 920 billion VND compared to the beginning of the year, equivalent to an increase of 5.5% and reaching 46% of the target assigned by the Central Government... enough to affirm the position and position of Agribank in the market.

In particular, according to Tran Van Tai, Deputy Director of Agribank Ha Tinh Branch, from loans of billions or just 5-10 million VND, other banks refused, Agribank still persistently accompanied customers. They are very potential customers, among them, many have built their own businesses, contributing greatly to the local GDP. "And this is also the way Agribank quietly creates opportunities for the private economic sector to develop" - Mr. Tran Van Tai said.

Agribank Deputy General Director Phung Thi Binh also shared that in reality, the private economic sector has developed strongly but private enterprises still face many difficulties. Most private enterprises are small and medium-sized, with limited financial potential and competitiveness. This is also one of the reasons why private enterprises still face many difficulties in accessing capital. In that context, the trust and companionship of Agribank has given wings to the private economy to fly high and far. Up to now, the proportion of investment credit for this sector accounts for about 80% of Agribank's total outstanding loans with nearly 1.4 million billion VND, of which enterprises in the private economic sector with a scale of more than 400 thousand billion VND, account for about 90% of outstanding loans for corporate customers and have increased by more than 30% in the past 5 years.

Box: In addition to reducing the average lending interest rate by nearly 2% at the end of 2024 compared to the beginning of the year and being among the lowest in the market; In the first 2 months of 2025, Agribank continued to reduce the short-term lending interest rate floor by 0.2% - 0.5% to promote credit growth, while implementing 9 credit programs with a scale of over 350 trillion VND with lending interest rates 1-3% lower than normal interest rates, ensuring full provision of credit products to all customers. In particular, for enterprises in the private economic sector alone, Agribank has allocated a capital source of 240 trillion VND, applicable to many subjects such as: large corporate customers, small and medium enterprises, import-export customers, etc.

*Excerpt from Central Vietnam, Hoang Tran Cuong, Good Vietnamese Poetry of the 20th Century. Culture and Information Publishing House, 2006, pp.81-82.

Source: https://daibieunhandan.vn/bai-1-dong-hanh-bang-trach-nhiem-va-su-tu-te-post408416.html