Profit always be the top priority of banking operation over the years. Commercial banks maximize the net interest margin by charging more interests to the borrowers and offering lower interests to the depositors. Their aggressive lending strategies can sometimes result in credit risk, moral hazard and non-performing loans. Some studies found that non-performing loans have negative impact on the bank’s profitability; some argued otherwise. This paper aims at investigating the impact of non-performing loans on the ability to make profit of Vietnamese commercial banks in the period of 2008 to 2017 and draws a conclusion as well as recommendations to mitigate the risk.

Profit always be the top priority of banking operation over the years. Commercial banks maximize the net interest margin by charging more interests to the borrowers and offering lower interests to the depositors. Their aggressive lending strategies can sometimes result in credit risk, moral hazard and non-performing loans. Some studies found that non-performing loans have negative impact on the bank’s profitability; some argued otherwise. This paper aims at investigating the impact of non-performing loans on the ability to make profit of Vietnamese commercial banks in the period of 2008 to 2017 and draws a conclusion as well as recommendations to mitigate the risk.