Hanoi Stock Exchange

The Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX) is a Vietnamese securities-market institution headquartered in Hanoi. It was formally established in 2009 through the transformation and restructuring of the Hanoi Securities Trading Center, which had begun operations on March 8, 2005, as the second securities trading center established in Vietnam after the Ho Chi Minh City Securities Trading Center. HNX was inaugurated on June 24, 2009, as a state-owned single-member limited liability company under the Ministry of Finance. HNX provides organized infrastructure for auctions and secondary-market trading in securities. Its activities have included listed-share trading, government-bond auctions and trading, corporate-bond markets, derivatives, and the UPCoM market for public companies whose shares are not listed on a formal stock exchange. UPCoM was launched on June 24, 2009, with ten stock codes and was designed to give unlisted public companies a regulated venue for registration and trading. The market subsequently expanded substantially, with more than 500 stock codes reported by 2024. The exchange's role has evolved as Vietnam's market infrastructure has been reorganized. Since 2020, HNX has primarily operated Vietnam's bond markets and the UPCoM market, while much of the country's conventional share trading has been transferred to the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange. HNX also operates a derivatives market launched in August 2017. Its principal equity-related indicators include the HNX-Index and UPCoM-Index, while its fixed-income functions cover government and corporate securities. HNX operates on business days in two daily sessions, separated by a midday break, using Vietnam's UTC+7 time zone. Trading rules include daily price limits for ordinary shares and UPCoM securities, with wider limits in certain initial-trading or post-suspension circumstances. Foreign-investment participation is subject to Vietnamese ownership rules, including general limits for companies and separate restrictions for banks and securities firms. Institutionally, HNX became a subsidiary of the Vietnam Stock Exchange after the Vietnamese government established that national exchange in December 2020. The arrangement placed HNX and the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange within a unified national exchange structure while preserving their operational market roles. HNX therefore functions less as a broad standalone equity venue than as a specialized component of Vietnam's capital-markets system, particularly important for bonds, derivatives, and unlisted public-company trading.

The institutional history of the Hanoi Stock Exchange begins with Vietnam's effort to build organized securities markets in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The Hanoi Securities Trading Center was created under Prime Ministerial Decision No. 127/1998/QD-TTg. It ultimately began trading on March 8, 2005, following the opening of the Ho Chi Minh City Securities Trading Center and became the second organized securities-trading venue in the country. The Hanoi venue initially supported the development of Vietnam's emerging equity market and provided a formal setting for securities auctions and trading. By the end of 2006, the combined market capitalization of the Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City securities trading centers was reported at approximately US$14 billion, equivalent to 22.7 percent of Vietnam's gross domestic product at that time. This expansion reflected the government's broader effort to create regulated channels for corporate financing and investment. A major institutional change occurred in 2009. Under Prime Ministerial Decision No. 01/2009/QD-TTg, the Hanoi Securities Trading Center was reorganized as the Hanoi Stock Exchange. The new entity was officially inaugurated on June 24, 2009, as a state-owned single-member limited liability company owned by the Ministry of Finance. On the same date, it introduced UPCoM, a trading platform for public companies that were not listed on a formal exchange. UPCoM began with ten stock codes and became an important bridge between private or unlisted public-company status and organized market trading. HNX later broadened its role beyond ordinary share trading. It developed centralized government-bond bidding and trading, corporate-bond market functions, and a derivatives market that opened in August 2017. The exchange also maintained the HNX-Index and UPCoM-Index as principal market indicators. In May 2015, it joined the United Nations Sustainable Stock Exchanges initiative, connecting it with international discussions about sustainability, disclosure, and responsible exchange operations. The allocation of market functions changed during the 2020s. From 2020, HNX became primarily associated with Vietnam's bond markets and UPCoM, while most conventional stock trading was transferred to the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange. This specialization made HNX a central venue for fixed-income instruments and unlisted public-company securities rather than the country's sole or dominant equity exchange. Vietnam's exchange structure was further consolidated by Prime Ministerial Decision No. 37/2020/QD-TTg, issued on December 23, 2020. The decision established the Vietnam Stock Exchange as the national parent organization, with both HNX and the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange becoming subsidiaries whose charter capital was wholly owned by the new entity. HNX continues to operate as an active component of Vietnam's capital-markets infrastructure, with responsibilities spanning government and corporate bonds, UPCoM, derivatives, auctions, and related trading services.

• 2024

  UPCoM exceeds 500 stock codes

  [1]Hanoi Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  The UPCoM market was reported to have grown to more than 500 stock codes by 2024.

• 2020

  National exchange structure created

  [1]Hanoi Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  Decision No. 37/2020/QD-TTg established the Vietnam Stock Exchange as HNX's parent organization.

• 2017

  Derivatives market launched

  [1]Hanoi Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  HNX began operating a derivatives market in August 2017.

• 2015

  Sustainable Stock Exchanges participation

  [1]Hanoi Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  HNX joined the United Nations Sustainable Stock Exchanges initiative during its Southeast Asian regional dialogue.

• 2009

  HNX formally established

  [1]Hanoi Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  The predecessor was reorganized and officially inaugurated as the Hanoi Stock Exchange on June 24, 2009.

• 2009

  UPCoM introduced

  [1]Hanoi Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  HNX launched UPCoM for unlisted public companies, initially with ten stock codes.

• 2005

  Hanoi securities trading begins

  [1]Hanoi Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  The Hanoi Securities Trading Center commenced operations on March 8, 2005, as Vietnam's second securities trading center.

• 1998

  Predecessor trading center established

  [1]Hanoi Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  The Hanoi Securities Trading Center was created under Prime Ministerial Decision No. 127/1998/QD-TTg, establishing the institutional predecessor of HNX.

Financial market infrastructure and securities exchange

• Fixed income · 2006

  Government Bond Market

  HNX provides centralized bidding and trading infrastructure for Vietnamese government bonds. Government-bond activities have been part of the exchange's market role since 2006 and became especially important after HNX's post-2020 specialization in fixed-income markets.

• Fixed income

  Corporate Bond Market

  The corporate-bond segment supports trading and market organization for corporate debt instruments, including public and private corporate bonds. It forms part of HNX's broader role in Vietnam's bond-market infrastructure.

• Unlisted public-company market · 2009

  UPCoM

  UPCoM is HNX's organized market for public companies whose shares are not listed on a formal stock exchange. Launched in 2009 with ten stock codes, it gives eligible companies a regulated venue for registration, disclosure, and trading and had grown to more than 500 stock codes by 2024.

• Derivatives · 2017

  HNX Derivatives Market

  HNX's derivatives market, launched in August 2017, adds exchange-traded derivatives to the institution's securities-market offering and complements its equity, bond, and unlisted-company venues.

• Market index

  HNX-Index

  The HNX-Index is the principal stock-market index associated with the Hanoi Stock Exchange and is used to track share-price performance on the exchange's relevant equity market.

• Market index

  UPCoM-Index

  The UPCoM-Index tracks the performance of securities traded on the UPCoM market for unlisted public companies.

• 2015United Nations Sustainable Stock Exchanges initiative

  International

  HNX joined the United Nations Sustainable Stock Exchanges initiative during a regional dialogue hosted in Bangkok by the Stock Exchange of Thailand, linking the exchange to international work on sustainable-market practices.

  Outcome. HNX became part of the initiative's regional exchange network.

  Source

• 2020

  Shift toward bonds and UPCoMStrategy

  Background

  Vietnam reorganized the division of responsibilities between its two main exchange venues.

  Action taken

  From 2020, HNX primarily served the bond markets and UPCoM, while most conventional stock trading was transferred to the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange.

  Aftermath

  HNX developed a more specialized role centered on fixed income, derivatives, and unlisted public-company trading.

  Source

• 2020

  Become a subsidiary of Vietnam Stock ExchangeStrategy

  Background

  The government sought to create a unified national exchange structure for Vietnam's securities markets.

  Action taken

  Decision No. 37/2020/QD-TTg established the Vietnam Stock Exchange and made HNX and the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange its wholly owned subsidiaries.

  Aftermath

  HNX continued operating under a consolidated national exchange framework.

  Source

• 2017

  Launch derivatives tradingProduct launch

  Background

  Vietnam's capital-markets system expanded beyond cash securities into exchange-traded derivatives.

  Action taken

  HNX launched its derivatives market in August 2017.

  Aftermath

  Derivatives became part of HNX's continuing market-infrastructure responsibilities.

  Source

• 2009

  Transform the Hanoi Securities Trading Center into HNXStrategy

  Background

  Vietnam's government reorganized the Hanoi Securities Trading Center to create a formal stock exchange with a broader role in securities auctions and trading.

  Action taken

  Prime Ministerial Decision No. 01/2009/QD-TTg established and restructured the Hanoi Stock Exchange, which was inaugurated on June 24, 2009.

  Aftermath

  The former trading center became a state-owned single-member limited liability company under the Ministry of Finance.

  Source

• 2009

  Launch UPCoM for unlisted public companiesProduct launch

  Background

  Many public companies were not listed on a formal exchange but required an organized and transparent market for their securities.

  Action taken

  HNX opened UPCoM on June 24, 2009, initially admitting ten stock codes.

  Aftermath

  The venue developed into a major Vietnamese market for unlisted public-company securities, with more than 500 stock codes reported by 2024.

  Source

1. 1Hanoi Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org