There was a major plan for merging Hà Nội Stock Exchange and the HCM Stock Exchange. This merge of the two stock exchanges was on the table for a couple of years now but it has been recently announced that Vietnam's two bourses based respectively in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi will continue to operate independently under a new state-owned company. The main objective of the merger was to improve transparency and attract more foreign investors but it turned out that the disagreement over where the combined stock exchange should be located was even greater than originally thought.