Vietnam's Eximbank, 15 percent owned by Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, said its gross profit in the first nine months of this year rose 5.5 percent to VND1.16 trillion (US$65 million.)

The Ho Chi Minh City-based lender, Vietnam's eighth-largest bank by assets, said in a statement on Tuesday its total assets reached VND63 trillion at the end of September, a rise of 30.6 percent from the end of 2008.

Eximbank, or the Export Import Bank, announced the nine-month results ahead of the domestic listing of all its 880 million shares on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange later this month.

Eximbank said January to September's loans reached VND35 trillion, a surge of 65 percent from the end of 2008, while it also raised deposits worth VND45.5 trillion during the first nine months of this year.

Apart from SMFG, British Virgin Islands-registered VOF Investment Ltd owns 5 percent of Eximbank and MAE, part of South Korean fund group Mirae Asset, has 4.5 percent.