GIFT City signs MoU with Vietnam's Da Nang financial hub for cross-border investment
Synopsis
GIFT City — India's only IFSC, now home to 1,500-plus entities and $111 billion in banking assets — has signed an MoU with Vietnam's newly formed Da Nang financial centre. The deal exports something rarer than capital: the institutional blueprint for building a greenfield financial hub from scratch, and it marks a quiet but significant step in India–Vietnam financial diplomacy.
Key Takeaways
GIFT City and Vietnam International Financial Center – Da Nang (VIFC-DN) signed an MoU on 7 July to share institutional knowledge and best practices.
Collaboration spans financial services, fintech, digital innovation, capacity building , and cross-border investment.
Sanjay Kaul , MD and Group CEO of GIFT City, said the tie-up will strengthen India–Vietnam financial and business linkages.
GIFT City has also recently signed MoUs with Tata Communications (GCCs and tech enterprises) and CEPT University (urban planning and research).
GIFT City currently hosts more than 1,500 entities with banking assets of $111 billion as of March 2026 .
Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), India's only International Financial Services Centre (IFSC), on Tuesday, 7 July formalised a partnership with Vietnam International Financial Center – Da Nang (VIFC-DN), a newly established financial hub in Vietnam, to exchange institutional knowledge and co-develop best practices for building globally competitive financial centres.
What the MoU Covers
The memorandum of understanding (MoU) spans a broad range of cooperation areas, including financial services, fintech and digital innovation, capacity building, and overall financial sector development. Both institutions have committed to exploring cross-border investment opportunities and deepening business linkages between India and Vietnam.
Beyond transactional collaboration, the two centres will engage in joint research and publications, professional exchanges, conferences, seminars, and outreach initiatives, maintaining ongoing dialogue on areas of mutual institutional interest.
GIFT City's Role in Shaping VIFC-DN
Sanjay Kaul, Managing Director and Group CEO of GIFT City, said the partnership would open new avenues in financial services, fintech, and investment while transferring hard-won institutional experience. 'International collaboration is essential to building globally competitive financial centres… We believe this collaboration can contribute to stronger financial and business linkages between India and Vietnam,' Kaul said.
The official release noted that 'having built India's only IFSC from the ground up, GIFT City will share lessons and institutional experience from its development journey as VIFC-DN takes shape.' For Da Nang, which is still in its formative phase, access to GIFT City's regulatory and operational playbook could meaningfully compress its development timeline.
GIFT City's Expanding MoU Ecosystem
This agreement is part of a wider strategic push by GIFT City to broaden its global and domestic footprint. The centre recently signed two additional MoUs targeting different pillars of its ecosystem.
A partnership with Tata Communications is designed to position GIFT City as a preferred destination for Global Capability Centres (GCCs), treasury centres, and technology enterprises, covering stakeholder engagement, market intelligence sharing, and business development. Separately, an MoU with CEPT University enables collaboration on research, executive education, sustainability studies, and urban planning — drawing on the university's expertise in architecture and urban management.
GIFT City by the Numbers
GIFT City currently hosts more than 1,500 entities and holds banking assets worth $111 billion as of March 2026. The scale underscores why Vietnam's Da Nang has looked to GIFT City as a reference model: few financial centres outside established global hubs have scaled this rapidly within a single decade.
As both India and Vietnam deepen their economic ties under broader regional frameworks, the GIFT City–VIFC-DN partnership signals a new dimension of financial diplomacy — one where institutional knowledge, not just capital, becomes an exportable asset.
Point of View
The influence GIFT City exerts now could shape Da Nang's regulatory architecture for years. What mainstream coverage underplays is the competitive dimension: as Singapore and Hong Kong remain the default templates for emerging Asian financial hubs, India is making a case that GIFT City's IFSC model — built under a distinct regulatory sandbox — is a viable alternative. The real test will be whether cross-border investment flows actually materialise, or whether this MoU joins a long list of well-intentioned bilateral frameworks that produce conferences but little capital movement.
NationPress
7 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the GIFT City MoU with Vietnam's Da Nang about?
GIFT City signed an MoU with Vietnam International Financial Center – Da Nang (VIFC-DN) on 7 July to share institutional knowledge, fintech expertise, and best practices as Da Nang builds its own international financial centre. The agreement also aims to facilitate cross-border investment and stronger business ties between India and Vietnam.
What areas does the GIFT City–VIFC-DN collaboration cover?
The MoU covers financial services, fintech and digital innovation, capacity building, and financial sector development. Both institutions will also engage in joint research, professional exchanges, conferences, and seminars on areas of mutual interest.
Who leads GIFT City and what did they say about the MoU?
Sanjay Kaul, Managing Director and Group CEO of GIFT City, said the collaboration would explore new opportunities in financial services, fintech, and investment. He stated that 'international collaboration is essential to building globally competitive financial centres' and that the tie-up can strengthen financial and business linkages between India and Vietnam.
What other MoUs has GIFT City recently signed?
GIFT City recently signed an MoU with Tata Communications to position it as a preferred destination for Global Capability Centres and technology enterprises, and another with CEPT University covering research, urban planning, executive education, and sustainability studies.
How large is GIFT City today?
As of March 2026, GIFT City hosts more than 1,500 entities and holds banking assets worth $111 billion, making it India's sole IFSC and one of the fastest-growing financial centres in Asia.
