PM Dung: Equitization paying big dividends

 Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung told a Global Investment Forum convened recently in Hanoi that the number of state-own enterprises has dropped by 90% from roughly 12,000 over the past two decades.

The end of the process is now within sight and the hope is that the major restructuring can be completed by year’s end said PM Dung— but overall it has paid huge dividends for the nation’s economic development.

Beginning in 2008 until now, there have been many vagaries in the the stock market that have slowed the process and made it difficult to find investors, particularly foreign investors.

The nation’s economy has also been advancing at a fast clip and as a result there have been many attractive alternative competing investments in Vietnam’s stock market making investment dollars scarce.

In the final stretch, the number of state-owned enterprises (SoEs) listed on the stock exchanges will increase, offering plentiful opportunities for foreign investors and we welcome their participation, the Prime Minister assured.

Dung said this year the merger and acquisition market has heated up and according to the Institute of Mergers, Acquisitions and Alliances (IMAA), there were 400 deals valued at roughly US$3.8 billion.

Major deals included Vingroup's acquisition of a 70% stake in Ocean Retails, Mondelez International’s acquisition of an 80% interest in Kinh Do for US$370 million and Standard Chartered Private Equity’s US$90 million acquisition of An Giang Plan Protection.

Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Dang Huy Dong in turn told attendees to the forum that the equitization process has created a friendlier business climate and has been a key factor behind the nation’s economic success over recent years.

The process has spurred innumerable institutional and financial reforms that in confluence with international integration have spilled over resulting in a revamp of investment, corporate and property laws.

For his part, Minister of Planning and Investment Bui Quang Vinh said the plans to equitize state owned enterprises (SOEs) and raise the ratio of foreign ownership in them has drawn positive review from foreign investors.

Vinh affirmed the government is committed to continual improvement of the legal framework in line with international obligations and stands ready to innovate for higher national competiveness.

Last but not least, Tony Shale, the CEO of Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC in Asia, applauded the Vietnam government’s efforts as having resulted in creating the most attractive emerging market in Asia.

In addition, Shale emphasized the government’s steadfast dedication to augmenting the business environment and competitiveness have resulted in impressive outcomes in foreign investment attraction.

VOV