VNG has canceled a plan to list shares on Nasdaq on September 27 as previously planned. The date of entering the bourse remains unclear.

As VietNamNet reported, on August 24 VNG released an announcement that VNG Limited had officially submitted a dossier under the F-1 form to SEC (US Securities and Exchange Commission) to register to list its shares on Nasdaq.

At that time, sources said VNG initially planned to list shares on the US bourse on September 22. However, VNG changed the plan because of the lack of time for preparation, and delayed the listing until September 27.

However, a VietNamNet source said the plan on listing shares on September 27 may not occur as expected because the technology firm has some document problems and it has been required to present more documents as per SEC’s request. The official date of listing is still up in the air.

VietNamNet contacted VNG’s public relations division which said that the delay was a policy of the company, and it did not want to comment about the information.

VNG Limited, which plans to list shares on Nasdaq, holds 49 percent of shares of VNG Corporation. This is a firm of many well-known shareholders from China, including Tencent and Ant Group, and the Singaporean government’s investment fund GIC.

Regarding VNG’s shareholder structure, Le Hong Minh and Vuong Quang Khai hold 45 percent and 6 percent of shares, respectively. Tencent is the biggest shareholder, holding 23 percent, while the remaining belongs to Ant Group and other international institutions.

VNG Limited’s shares (VNZ) on UpCom have seen slight price fluctuations in recent days, traded at VND1.13-1.15 million per share. However, VNZ prices dropped to VND971,000 per share on September 20 and VND907,000 on September 21.

In mid-2010, Le Hong Minh, the founder and CEO of VNG, told Forbes that he dreamed of listing the shares of the company on international bourses, such as Nasdaq and Hong Kong. 

In 2017, VNG signed an MOU on the plan to list shares on Nasdaq in New York.

In 2022, sources said VNG would list shares in the US by early 2023, planning to offer 12.5 percent of shares at an IPO on Nasdaq.

However, the listing plan did not occur as scheduled. Instead of Nasdaq, VNG lists shares on UpCom (35,844,262 VNZ), including 28.7 million circulating shares and 7.1 million treasury shares. 

On UpCom, VNZ once was the most expensive share and it saw prices hitting ceiling levels in 10 consecutive trading sessions. On its golden day, the price peaked at VND1.4 million per share, which meant capitalization of VND39 trillion.

Despite the delays, investors believe that VNG Limited will list its shares on Nasdaq, sooner or later.

Manh Ha