Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange

The Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, commonly known as HOSE, HoSE, or HSX, is a securities exchange based in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. It is one of the country's two principal stock exchanges and serves as the main organized market in Vietnam for listed equities, fund certificates, exchange-traded fund certificates, and covered warrants. The exchange is also the home of the VN-Index, the first and most widely followed benchmark for Vietnamese listed stocks. The institution was established in 1998 under Decision No. 127/1998/QD-TTg of the Prime Minister of Vietnam. It initially operated as the Ho Chi Minh City Securities Trading Center, commonly abbreviated HoSTC. The center formally opened on July 20, 2000, and held its first trading session on July 28, 2000. That inaugural session involved two listed companies and six securities-company members, marking an early institutional step in the development of Vietnam's modern securities market. In 2007, Decision No. 599/2007/QD-TTg transformed the securities trading center into the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange. At that point, the exchange received initial charter capital of VND 1,000 billion, with Vietnam's Ministry of Finance acting as the owner representative. Its charter capital was later adjusted to VND 2,000 billion in 2015. The exchange's institutional role includes organizing securities trading, supporting listing and disclosure processes, maintaining market information systems, and administering market-related financial, statistical, accounting, and auditing obligations within the framework of Vietnamese law. HOSE's listed-market product range includes ordinary stocks, closed-end fund certificates, ETF certificates, and covered warrants. Its market structure is supported by a family of capitalization-weighted, free-float-adjusted, sector, sustainability, and investment-oriented indices. The VN-Index remains the broad headline indicator, while the HOSE index family includes VNAllshare, VN30, VNMidcap, VN100, VNSmallcap, sector indices, and the Vietnam Sustainability Index. HOSE also supports investment-oriented indices such as VNFIN LEAD, VNFINSELECT, and VN Diamond. The exchange operates from the Exchange Tower on Võ Văn Kiệt Boulevard in the Bến Thành area of Ho Chi Minh City. The building previously housed the Senate of the former Republic of Vietnam before 1975. HOSE also maintains a data and backup center at Quang Trung Software City, approximately 15 kilometers northwest of the main site. Trading normally takes place Monday through Friday, excluding public holidays. The standard daily price fluctuation limit for stocks and fund certificates is plus or minus 7 percent, while a newly listed stock may have a first-day limit of plus or minus 20 percent; the stated stock limits do not apply to bonds. A major governance change occurred after Decision No. 37/2020/QD-TTg, issued on December 23, 2020. The decision established the Vietnam Stock Exchange as a state-owned, one-member limited liability company responsible for organizing Vietnam's securities market. Under the new structure, HOSE and the Hanoi Stock Exchange became subsidiaries with 100 percent of their charter capital owned by the Vietnam Stock Exchange. HOSE therefore continues to operate as a distinct exchange while forming part of a unified national exchange structure.

The Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange emerged from Vietnam's post-1990s effort to create formal securities-market institutions. In 1998, the Prime Minister issued Decision No. 127/1998/QD-TTg, establishing the organization that would become the Ho Chi Minh City Securities Trading Center. The institution was intended to provide an organized venue for securities trading and to support the development of a regulated Vietnamese capital market. The center formally opened on July 20, 2000. Its first trading session followed on July 28, 2000, with two listed companies and six securities-company members. Although small by the standards of established global exchanges, this opening represented the beginning of organized stock trading in Ho Chi Minh City and an important milestone in Vietnam's financial-market development. The exchange's current headquarters are located in the Exchange Tower on Võ Văn Kiệt Boulevard in Ho Chi Minh City's Bến Thành area. The building has historical significance because it previously housed the Senate of the Republic of Vietnam before the Fall of Saigon in 1975. HOSE also operates a data and backup center at Quang Trung Software City in Ho Chi Minh City, supporting the technological infrastructure required for market operations. A key institutional transition took place in 2007. Under Decision No. 599/2007/QD-TTg, the Ho Chi Minh City Securities Trading Center was converted into the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange. The reconstituted exchange received initial charter capital of VND 1,000 billion, with the Ministry of Finance serving as the representative of the owner. The charter capital was adjusted to VND 2,000 billion in 2015. As Vietnam's listed-equity market developed, HOSE expanded beyond the basic operation of a trading venue. Its listed products came to include stocks, closed-end fund certificates, ETF certificates, and covered warrants. It also developed a broad index system. The VN-Index, which predates many of the specialized HOSE indices, measures the performance of Vietnamese listed shares through a market-capitalization-based methodology. The index is adjusted for events such as new listings, delistings, and changes in listing capital. The HOSE index framework, launched in 2014, created additional benchmarks screened for characteristics such as eligibility, free-float ratio, and liquidity. Its major components include VNAllshare, VN30, VNMidcap, VN100, and VNSmallcap. HOSE also maintains sector indices classified using the Global Industry Classification Standard, along with the Vietnam Sustainability Index, which uses sustainability-related screening and a free-float-adjusted market-capitalization methodology. In November 2019, the exchange added VNFIN LEAD, VNFINSELECT, and VN Diamond to address more specialized investment and fund-management needs. HOSE generally trades from Monday through Friday except on public holidays. Stocks and fund certificates are subject to a normal daily price fluctuation band of plus or minus 7 percent, while the first trading day of a newly listed stock may use a plus-or-minus 20 percent band. These limits, as described in the reference material, do not apply to bonds. The most significant recent governance change followed Decision No. 37/2020/QD-TTg, issued on December 23, 2020. The decision established the Vietnam Stock Exchange as a state-owned, one-member limited liability company with responsibility for organizing the national securities market. HOSE and the Hanoi Stock Exchange became subsidiaries of the Vietnam Stock Exchange, each with 100 percent of its charter capital owned by the parent exchange. This arrangement placed HOSE within a unified national exchange structure while preserving its role as the principal Ho Chi Minh City venue for listed securities. HOSE's continuing functions include organizing securities trading, supporting the listing market, producing and administering indices, providing market information, and fulfilling financial, statistical, accounting, and auditing responsibilities required by Vietnamese law. Its development reflects the gradual institutionalization, expansion, and consolidation of Vietnam's securities-market infrastructure.

• 2020

  Vietnam Stock Exchange becomes parent organization

  [1]Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  Decision No. 37/2020/QD-TTg established the Vietnam Stock Exchange and made HOSE a wholly owned subsidiary alongside the Hanoi Stock Exchange.

• 2019

  Specialized investment indices introduced

  [1]Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  HOSE introduced VNFIN LEAD, VNFINSELECT, and VN Diamond in November to support more specialized investment strategies and fund products.

• 2015

  Charter capital adjusted

  [1]Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  The exchange's charter capital was adjusted to VND 2,000 billion.

• 2014

  HOSE index framework introduced

  [1]Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  HOSE introduced an index framework using eligibility, free-float, and liquidity screening for listed stocks.

• 2007

  Conversion into Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange

  [1]Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  Decision No. 599/2007/QD-TTg converted the securities trading center into the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange and set initial charter capital at VND 1,000 billion.

• 2000

  Formal opening and first trading session

  [1]Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  The Ho Chi Minh City Securities Trading Center opened on July 20 and held its first trading session on July 28, with two listed companies and six securities-company members.

• 1998

  Institution established

  [1]Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org

  Decision No. 127/1998/QD-TTg established the institution that later became the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange.

A state-owned Vietnamese securities-market infrastructure institution focused on organized trading, listing, market data, and benchmark-index administration for equities and related listed products.

• Equities · 2000

  Listed stocks

  HOSE provides the organized listing and trading venue for shares of Vietnamese companies that meet applicable legal and exchange requirements. Stocks form the core of the exchange's market activity and provide the underlying universe for broad, large-capitalization, mid-capitalization, small-capitalization, sector, sustainability, and investment-oriented indices.

• Fund products

  Closed-end fund certificates

  Closed-end fund certificates are listed investment-fund interests traded on the exchange. They give investors access to professionally managed portfolios through a listed security and form part of HOSE's non-equity listed-product offering.

• Fund products

  ETF certificates

  Exchange-traded fund certificates are listed fund interests that can be bought and sold during exchange trading sessions. Their presence expands the range of exchange-traded investment vehicles and supports products designed to track market or sector benchmarks.

• Structured products

  Covered warrants

  Covered warrants are exchange-listed derivative-style instruments available for trading on HOSE. They provide a structured way for investors to obtain exposure to specified underlying securities under the rules and disclosure framework applicable to the Vietnamese market.

• Market index · 2000

  VN-Index

  The VN-Index is the main headline indicator associated with Vietnam's listed stock market. It compares current listed-market capitalization with a base market value and incorporates adjustments for events such as new listings, delistings, and changes in listing capital.

• Market indices · 2014

  HOSE index family

  The HOSE index family includes VNAllshare, VN30, VNMidcap, VN100, VNSmallcap, sector indices, and the Vietnam Sustainability Index. These benchmarks organize eligible listed stocks by market capitalization, liquidity, size, sector, or sustainability-related screening criteria.

• Market indices · 2019

  Investment indices

  VNFIN LEAD, VNFINSELECT, and VN Diamond are specialized indices introduced for investment and fund-management applications. They provide more targeted benchmarks than the broad VN-Index by focusing on selected financial, sector, or eligibility characteristics.

• 2020

  Integration into the Vietnam Stock Exchange structureM&A

  Background

  Vietnam adopted a unified institutional structure for organizing its securities market.

  Action taken

  Decision No. 37/2020/QD-TTg established the Vietnam Stock Exchange as a state-owned, one-member limited liability company and made HOSE and the Hanoi Stock Exchange wholly owned subsidiaries.

  Aftermath

  HOSE retained its exchange role while becoming part of a national exchange group with the Vietnam Stock Exchange as parent organization.

  Source

• 2015

  Charter capital adjustmentOther

  Background

  The exchange's capitalization was revised after its conversion into a formal stock exchange.

  Action taken

  HOSE's charter capital was adjusted to VND 2,000 billion.

  Aftermath

  The adjustment increased the stated capital base of the state-owned exchange.

  Charter capital. VND 1,000 billion → VND 2,000 billion (2015)

  Source

• 2007

  Transformation into a stock exchangeStrategy

  Background

  The securities trading center had begun operating and Vietnam was formalizing the governance and capitalization of its exchange institutions.

  Action taken

  Decision No. 599/2007/QD-TTg converted the Ho Chi Minh City Securities Trading Center into the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange and established initial charter capital of VND 1,000 billion.

  Aftermath

  HOSE operated as the formal stock exchange for Ho Chi Minh City under state ownership represented by the Ministry of Finance.

  Initial charter capital. VND 1,000 billion (2007)

  Source

• 1998

  Establishment of the securities trading institutionStrategy

  Background

  Vietnam was developing formal securities-market infrastructure and required an organized venue for listed securities trading.

  Action taken

  Decision No. 127/1998/QD-TTg established the institution that later became HOSE.

  Aftermath

  The institution proceeded toward formal opening in 2000 and became a central part of Vietnam's organized securities market.

  Source

1. 1Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchangeen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange official websitehsx.vn