The State Capital Investment Corporation (SCIC) will divest 9 per cent of its holding in Vinamilk this year, a senior executive from the corporation has confirmed.

Deputy CEO Nguyen Hong Hien told a conference on “State Divestment and Registration to Trade on the Stock Exchange” held on October 25 that “SCIC will sell 9 per cent of Vinamilk at the end of November or early December.”

He then confirmed the news with VET via SCIC’s public relations department on October 27, saying “the sale is expected to happen this year.”

SCIC Chairman Nguyen Duc Chi told a press conference in Hanoi last month that the government holds 45.1 per cent of Vinamilk’s equity and a 9 per cent stake would be sold this year. He added that the real asset value of the company was under $1 billion but its market price was up to $9 billion.

Vinamilk was among ten major enterprises whose divestment schemes were discussed at last month’s press conference, which heard that SCIC’s total market capital was some $4.48 billion. It will divest from the remaining enterprises next year, Mr. Chi said.

SCIC announced on October 12 that it had selected consultants to advise it on the sale of the 9 per cent stake: Morgan Stanley Asia (Singapore) Limited, Saigon Securities Incorporation, and the VinaCapital Corporate Finance Vietnam Company Limited.

Based on market value, Vinamilk is considered its most valuable investment. The SCIC holds 44.73 per cent, or 649.26 million shares, equal to almost $4.2 billion. Last year Vinamilk paid a dividend of VND2.705 trillion ($123 million) to the SCIC.

As at the end of September, the SCIC had successfully divested holdings of VND6.2 trillion ($277.69 million) from 928 enterprises and gained VND14.67 trillion ($657.04 million) in return, or 2.5-fold what it paid.

There are still another 100 enterprises up for sale, according to plans. SCIC is divesting from ten major enterprises as soon as possible and is currently preparing and choosing the appropriate time. It will divest through auctions and public offerings for unlisted enterprises.

Regarding the registration process for bidding enterprises to trade and list, the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HoSE) will publish information on bidding enterprises and consulting enterprises to complete bidding procedures and propose solutions to authorities to ease constraints on enterprises to improve the effectiveness of bidding activities, said Deputy Chairman of HoSE Tran Van Dung.

Enterprises wishing to list and register to trade will consult with HoSE to quickly complete documents and finalize procedures. The stock exchange is currently introducing electronic systems to publish information for enterprises and will continually improve the stock trading system and trading methods.

VN Economic Times