The number of shares to be sold is equivalent to 47.8 per cent of its charter capital.

The time for the IPO is in line with the Prime Minister’s directive which asked the company to hold an IPO by June 30, 2018.

VTVcab, with a charter capital of VND884 billion (roughly US$39 million), is the only pay TV provider directly under VTV with 100 per cent equity owned by Vietnam Television.

At an initial bidding price of VND140,900 ($6.18) per share, the company is valued at nearly VND12.4 trillion ($543 million). Investors are expected to pay approximately VND6 trillion ($263 million) for the IPO shares.

VTVcab, founded in 2012 (previously known as MMDS Cable Television Centre), has superior position in the pay TV services industry in Viet Nam, thanks to great resources from VTV and advantage of both producing and selling content.

From the cable television system, VTVcab has expanded services to satellite digital TV and the latest, online television service. Currently, the provider broadcasts 200 TV channels, including 70 HD channels.

By the end of 2016, VTVcab reported a net revenue of VND2.05 trillion and a net profit of VND68.5 billion, an increase of 11.3 per cent and 5 per cent year-on-year, respectively.

However, its liabilities mounted to VND1.94 trillion, accounting for 80 per cent of the total capital. Of this, short-term debt was VND1.33 trillion, in excess of VND500 billion over short-term assets, raising the auditor’s concern about the company’s liquidity. — VNS