Every time when we have the chance to work at the Head Office, we cannot skip the Traditional room. With specific images of people and memorabilia arranged over time and space, the room highlights the 65-year tradition of construction and development of the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam, associated with each period in the long history of socio-economic development of the country that is also the beauty of BIDV culture.

Mr. Do Trong Kim

One of the unforgettable images in my mind is that of Mr. Do Trong Kim, the late General Director of Bank for Construction of Vietnam (the predecessor of the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam) in the period of 1958 - 1962. He was also the Rector of the Central Bank School of Finance and Accounting (later renamed Hanoi University of Finance and Accounting) in the early 1970s. He was not only the General Director but also a respectable teacher to me.

As a General Director of the Bank, a Rector of the University, he always dressed simple, stayed close and considerate to guide students (especially young people who had just graduated from high school) in life, in work, as well as in studying. The Rector was tall, a little thin, with white hair that was always cut short, how elegant and exemplary he looked.

In the first 3 months of the school year, we were mobilized to participate in building dikes against floods in Lap Thach district, Vinh Phu province and building schools with bamboo and palm leaves. Although it was raining and cold, the Rector wore a faded coat and came along with some school officials to encourage, direct and check the progress, and take care of the logistics for students. He went to each team to share the experience on cutting the soil, handing soil block to each other to the foot of the dyke. The soil must be compacted, if there was a hole to create a groundwater circuit for a long time, it would cause the dyke to break, which then led to unpredictable consequences... From then, everyone became enthusiastic, sang together, emulated to exceed the assigned targets with high quality, and was praised by district and provincial leaders.

In studying, Mr. Do Trong Kim paid more attention to cultivating honesty in students. How could I forget the first day of meeting the first students of class 9, in the newly built bamboo and palm leaf-roofed bamboo hall next to Doi Su (half-submerged in wartime style), he called four students (including me) and divided into 2 groups, taking turns on the board, each person wrote and added up the total of 2 series of numbers according to his words, from thousands to billions. When it was my turn, I was shaking and writing quickly, but my strokes were not up to standard. After 4 students completed calculation, he commented on each one in turn and gave general comments: Boys write quickly but the numbers are not clear, easy to confuse between number 5 and 6, number 3 and number 8..., Girls write slowly, but they are more careful. Being a finance-banking officer means you must be honest, incorruptible, digits must be written clearly and carefully, vertically, horizontally, in units, millions, billions, etc., with commas distinguishing odd amounts, dimes, cents… “The numbers in the financial statements must be talking numbers, honestly and timely, sometimes a small mistake or a wrong number will cause significant consequences… You are future banking and finance officers, being responsible for studying well to then manage the assets and money of the State and People in the future, stay absolutely away from embezzlement or enriching personal pockets”...

After studying for a year, in September 1972, 5 students of class 9 and I were honored to join the rookie group to fight for the country. Before enlisting in the army, we were together with Mr. Do Trong Kim in an intimate farewell ceremony, full of responsibility and full of teacher-student love: "This is a sacred but very glorious task of youth, an honor of our school. Wishing all of you to successfully complete the combat mission and return to school peacefully to continue studying and contributing to the development of the country…”

The country was unified. In November 1975, we were ordered to return to our school (Phuc Yen, Vinh Phu province) to continue studying. But on the reunion day, a friend did not return, martyr Nguyen Xuan Bien sacrificed his life heroically in the battle of Thanh Son Airport - Phan Rang - the historic Ho Chi Minh Campaign, and Mr. Kim returned to work at the Ministry of Finance in Hanoi.

For almost 25 years working at the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam, I have become gradually and deeply absorbed in the golden teachings of the late General Director about practicing honesty.

Now that Mr. Do Trong Kim has passed away, yet his name and career, as well as the names of senior leaders in the industry are a shining example for the young generation of the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam to follow. His excellent students, holding the positions of Chairman of the Board of Directors, General Director and Directors of BIDV branches, have been continuously steering the BIDV boat reaching out to the ocean, towards becoming a universal Financial and Banking Group, strong and integrated in the future.