Remitting Desire: Trans-Pacific Migration, Returns and Imaginaries in Vietnam

Abstract

The catalyst for capitalist growth in Vietnam—often dubbed Asia’s next Tiger economy1—is frequently ascribed to market reforms starting in 1986 and subsequent foreign investment flows. But diaspora capital sent from abroad has also contributed significantly to Vietnam’s economic growth over the last 30 years. Many of Vietnam’s so-called “overseas Vietnamese” left as refugees and migrants after the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. International remittances to Vietnam are estimated at around USD 15 billion annually,2 making it one of the top ten destinations in the world for money sent by diaspora populations back to home communities in the Global South. About 7-8 percent of households in Vietnam receive remittances from abroad.3 International remittance flows are higher than overseas development assistance to Vietnam, of which Vietnam is also a top ten recipient. This article examines developments in Vietnam’s remittance sector, including how they are being framed and embedded by new monetary policies, technologies, banking and finance trends, and consumer patterns that both enhance and complicate cross-border mobility. The material is drawn in part from my book, Currencies of Imagination: Channeling Money and Chasing Mobility in Vietnam (Cornell University Press 2018).