The most read Vietnamese newspaper
Edition: International | Vietnamese
© Copyright 1997 VnExpress.net. All rights reserved.
Singapore-based Morgan Stanley Asia will lead a group of consultants to guide the Vietnamese government's sale of a 9 percent stake in dairy giant Vinamilk, the State Capital Investment Corp (SCIC) said in a statement on Friday.
The group, which also includes Vietnam's Saigon Securities and VinaCapital Corporate Finance Vietnam, signed a contract on Wednesday with the SCIC, the Vietnamese government's investment arm.
The SCIC said it has hired top advisers to help it evaluate the deal so that lack of transparency will not cut into the actual profits that the government is supposed to earn from the sale.
The government’s 45 percent stake in Vinamilk is currently valued at about $4.5 billion on the stock market. The fact that Vietnamese market regulators have scrapped the long standing foreign-ownership cap on the stock, allowing foreign investors to own a 100 percent stake in the dairy company, could encourage foreign investors to pay a higher premium than local investors to own the shares.
The Vietnamese government is looking to cash in on its stakes in many state-owned enterprises.
The companies on the list include 10 major listed enterprises with public stakes managed by the SCIC, and unlisted breweries Sabeco and Habeco currently under the control of the Trade Ministry.
It is estimated that the government could rake in more than $5 billion following share sales in the big ten, including Vinamilk, information technology giant FPT and insurer Bao Minh.
Successful exits from Sabeco and Habeco will add about $2 billion to the public budget.
Related news:
>Vietnam to rake in $7 billion from massive divestment push
>Vietnam plans stake-sell-off from giant construction conglomerates
