BIDV Logo PNG
Building roads, ports, and power plants requires long-term financing. The BIDV logo represents a Vietnamese bank involved in these projects. Beyond personal accounts and money transfers, the bank finances the infrastructure businesses and residents need.
BIDV traces its origins to April 26, 1957, when the government of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam issued Decision No. 177/TTg to establish the Bank for Construction of Vietnam. The country had just emerged from the war for independence and needed financing for roads, bridges, industry, energy facilities, and repairing damaged infrastructure. The bank operated under the Ministry of Finance as a state tool for allocating capital investments, not as a commercial lender.
In the 1960s and 1970s, while war continued in the south, the bank financed heavy industry and energy projects in the north. Its work followed state plans, with targeted lending and no private customer base. On June 24, 1981, it was transferred to the State Bank of Vietnam. It was renamed the Bank for Investment and Construction of Vietnam to reflect its broader investment role.
A major shift came in November 1990, when the institution received its current name, Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam, or BIDV. The change followed the Doi Moi reforms launched in 1986, as Vietnam moved toward a market economy. While Agribank focused mainly on agriculture, BIDV became a key bank for large industrial and infrastructure projects, including roads, ports, and power plants. In the 1990s and 2000s, it expanded its presence and opened offices in Cambodia and Laos.
On December 28, 2011, BIDV held its IPO, and on January 24, 2014, it listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange under the ticker BID. In November 2019, South Korea’s KEB Hana Bank acquired a 15% stake for about $875 million, receiving more than 603 million new shares. The partnership brought technical support in corporate governance, digital banking, retail development, risk management, asset diversification, and staff training, as BIDV prepared to compete with private banks such as Techcombank.
Meaning and History
What is BIDV?
BIDV is one of Vietnam’s largest state-owned commercial banks and plays a key role in the country’s economic development. Through its extensive nationwide network, the bank offers a range of financial services, including corporate and retail banking, investment services, and insurance. The bank actively supports government programs and helps finance major industrial and infrastructure projects, contributing to the country’s modernization. It also focuses on digital innovation, enabling it to effectively serve the young, tech-savvy population. The bank is an important bridge for foreign investors entering the Vietnamese market, strengthening its national and international banking position.
1991 – 2008
The bank developed its early BIDV emblem after establishing a joint venture with Malaysia’s Public Bank. The partners needed symbols representing both organizations for their shared logo. Board Chairman Nguyen Van Doan, an engineer by training, designed it. He combined the letters “B,” “I,” “D,” and “V” into a monogram, and first presented it broadly at an official event on September 25, 1991.
The name BIDV emerged after several name changes. Founded on April 26, 1957, as Ngân hàng Kiến thiết Việt Nam, or the Construction Bank of Vietnam, the institution operated under the Ministry of Finance. The state-owned bank allocated government funds to industrial facilities, infrastructure, and other construction projects. In 1981, it became the Bank for Investment and Construction of Vietnam. In 1990, “Development” replaced “Construction” in the name. The English name, Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam, was abbreviated as “BIDV.” When the institution became a joint-stock commercial bank in 2012, its full name was expanded while the abbreviation remained unchanged.
The emblem combined the four initials inside a thin red diamond-shaped frame. A heavy red “V” echoed the frame’s lower corner and cradled the other letters. Blue shapes and a red vertical stroke appeared above it. The “I” and “D” joined the “B” to form a single design. The “V” represented Vietnam, the bank’s foundation. Red referred to the national flag, while the bank associated blue with the future, hope, and development. In the vertical layout, a small blue “BIDV” appeared beneath the diamond in uppercase sans-serif lettering.
The boat-and-sail image emerged later, after the letter-based design was created. In 1997, for the bank’s 40th anniversary, Thuy, an employee in the legal department, wrote a poem titled “Red Boat, Blue Sail” for the company bulletin. She interpreted the red “V” as a boat and the stylized “B” above it as a sail. BIDV employees and former staff embraced the interpretation. The nautical imagery appeared in subsequent poems and publications about the bank.
2003 – 2007
The 2003 BIDV logo gave the name greater prominence. A large blue abbreviation appeared on the left, with the diamond-shaped emblem on the right. The changes affected the proportions and placement of the components, while the design inside the diamond retained its original structure. The upright sans-serif letters had flat-ended strokes.
Further updates were discussed within the bank. One catalyst was a 2002 letter from a longtime customer who suggested reconsidering the shape, colors, and order of the letters. BIDV later invited employees and artists to enter a competition for ideas for the emblem and slogan.
In 2006, the bank introduced the slogan “Chia sẻ cơ hội, hợp tác thành công,” with the English version “Share opportunities, share success.” It expressed a commitment to sharing opportunities and achieving success together with customers and partners.
2009 – 2022
In 2009, BIDV issued a unified visual identity manual for its divisions. It covered more than 70 applications of the emblem and other design elements, aiming to give the bank’s materials a consistent appearance. Blue, red, and white remained the core colors.
The manual included a revised logo. The blue BIDV lettering became more compact and heavier, and the lettering and emblem’s relative sizes were adjusted. The horizontal layout remained, with the red diamond and its monogram to the right of the abbreviation.
As part of its search for a new visual identity, the bank held a logo competition and published the results in August 2009. Do Hoang Trung and Le Quoc Vu received second prizes, while V-Brand was among the third-prize recipients. A professional jury evaluated the entries, considered employee voting, and verified the rights to the submitted designs.
2022 – today
On April 26, 2022, on its 65th anniversary, BIDV unveiled a new visual identity, replacing the letter monogram inside the diamond with a yellow flower incorporating a star. The bank’s abbreviation and full name remained unchanged. The update accompanied the expansion of digital services and international cooperation. One goal was to make customer interactions friendlier. The bank planned to replace existing materials and signage in stages, completing the rollout by 2025.
The emblem consists of five rounded petals of a mai flower. The white space between them forms a five-pointed star that references Vietnam’s flag. Its 23.5-degree tilt matches Earth’s axial tilt. The bank also sees a person walking in the star’s outline. The five petals and five points symbolize growth, vitality, and BIDV’s ambition to operate on five continents.
The mai flower connects the logo to Vietnamese New Year traditions. In explaining the image’s origins, BIDV points to the golden blossoms of trees on Yen Tu Mountain, which the bank associates with longevity and resilience. The emblem’s yellow color draws references from the flower, the rising sun, and the financial sector.
The BIDV lettering adopted an emerald-green shade, which the bank describes as a symbol of life and longevity. The letterforms were softened, and the right diagonal of the “V” ended in a curve that echoed one of the star’s points. Alongside the primary version, a logo with the line “Since 1957” incorporated the bank’s founding year into the design.