VietNamNet Bridge - For years, people believe that Hanel was the owner of Daewoo Hotel after it bought hotel’s shares from the South Korean investor.

The hidden owners of Daewoo

At first, the legal entity which owned the hotel was Daeha, a joint venture of South Korean Daewoo E&C which contributed 70 percent of capital, and Vietnamese Hanel with 20 percent.

When the South Korean partner in the joint venture decided to leave Daewoo, Lotte, another investor from South Korea, wanted to acquire the 70 percent capital contribution from it. However, it was Hanel which won the deal and became the owner of Daewoo.

People believed that since then, Daewoo has been run by the new owner – Hanel.

In mid-2015, a deal to take over Daewoo was revealed by Saigontourist, a limited travel firm.

Saigontourist said Bong Sen Corp, one of its subsidiary, was planning to spend VND3.65 trillion, or $167 million, to take over Daeha Center. Daewoo Hotel is a part of the complex.

With the amount of money, Bong Sen hoped it could acquire 51 percent of Daeha Center.

Only when Hanel released the financial reports for 2012-2015 to serve its IPO (initial public offering), have people realized that Hanel never possessed 100 percent of Daeha’s, or Daewoo Hotel’s, stake. 

This means that Hanel quickly sold the entire 70 percent stake right after it bought from the South Korean partner in the joint venture.

For years, people believe that Hanel was the owner of Daewoo Hotel after it bought hotel’s shares from the South Korean investor.

The names of the two new real owners of Daewoo have just been unveiled. They are the Hop Thanh Investment & Minerals JSC and Hop Thanh 1 Investment JSC.

The names have made people think that the two companies have close relations. 

Hanel now still holds 30 percent of Daewoo’s stake with the investment cost of VND152 billion and receives VND30 billion in dividend from the joint venture every year.

Big surprise

A question has been raised that why Hanel decided to sell 70 percent of Daewoo’s stake to the Hop Thanh Investment & Minerals JSC and Hop Thanh 1 Investment JSC, which ‘bought on the nod’, but not to Lotte, the South Korean investor with powerful financial capability which would make payment immediately in cash.

Sources said the two buyers repeatedly temporized the payment. 

Hanel’s 2014 financial report showed that Hop Thanh Investment & Minerals JSC had owed VND29 billion to Hanel by December 31, 2014, while Hop Thanh 1 Investment JSC had owed ND107.7 billion.

The H1 2015 financial report did not say if the two new owners had paid debts.

Meanwhile, in its introduction, Hop Thanh Investment & Minerals JSC does not mention Daewoo. Hop Thanh 1 Investment proves to be even more mysterious with very little information exposed.


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