Vietnam confirms Nguyen Thi Hong as new central bank governor

Vietnam confirms Nguyen Thi Hong as new central bank governor

FILE PHOTO: Men ride motorcycles past the State Bank of Vietnam building in Hanoi June 11, 2013. REUTERS/Kham

HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam's National Assembly, the country's lawmaking body, on Thursday ratified the appointment of Nguyen Thi Hong as the country's central bank governor.

Hong, 52, replaced Le Minh Hung, who was appointed to a senior role in the ruling Communist Party. The appointment of Hong, who has worked at the central bank since 1991 and became deputy governor in 2014, was widely anticipated and Reuters last month reported the possibility of the move.

Hong will face challenges of containing bad debt in the banking system triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic and an ongoing investigation by the United States into whether Vietnam had been undervaluing its dong currency.

(Reporting by Khanh Vu; Editing by Martin Petty)