New wave of indirect investment to come to Vietnam (15/11)
06/08/2010 - 132 Lượt xem
Experts believe that there is a new wave of foreign
indirect investment flowing toward
The
Government of Vietnam is pushing up the equitisation of a series of state owned
corporations, including Bao Viet (insurer), the Vietnam Post and
Telecommunication Corporation (VNPT), Electricity of Vietnam (EVN). Once
equitised, these big enterprises will provide a big volume of shares worth
several billions of dollars for the market.
Before becoming
Managing Director of VincaCapital, Pham Uyen Nguyen was the founder and
Executive Director of Bao Viet Securities Company in |
At
the same time, the legal framework on equitisation and securities market has
been active in creating a good investment climate in
VinaCapital
is managing one of the biggest foreign investment funds in
You have said that the Government’s policy proves to
be very open, but there are still worries about the negative impact of the
indirect investment. Will this bring any difficulties to investors?
It
is true that some people are concerned that Vietnamese enterprises will be
controlled by foreign investors. However, I must say that foreign investors
themselves also compete with each other in one company. Meanwhile, one
Vietnamese shareholder can also control a company as he holds the controlling
stakes of 51%.
I
don’t think the worries you have mentioned come from the Government. I know
that the Government is going to replace the currently valid Decision 36 on
foreign ownership in Vietnamese companies with a new one, which is being
drafted. As far as I know, no limit on foreign ownership will be set up,
excluding in the very sensitive fields. This spells that the Government is
self-confident and it has realised the active impact of the equitisation.
However,
I must say that barriers still exist which can dampen foreign investors.
Let’s
take an example. An equitised company has registered to do business in
different fields, including real estate trading. When equitising, it has the
right to sell its stakes to the public, including foreign investors. However,
the local department of planning and investment later said that foreign
investors cannot purchase the company’s shares, because the real estate is not
open to foreign investors. In this case, foreign investors would feel that they
had been cheated.
As
an investor, I am interested more in the impact to be brought about by the
equitisation process. I think the WTO membership is just a tool for
I
can draw up a scenario like that. Many enterprises will be eliminated by the
anticipated fierce competition, while others will survive the competition and
become stronger. I think in the future,
Regarding the adjustment of policies, I would like to
know your opinion on the fact that listing companies will not be given tax incentives
if they list on the bourse after January 1, 2007?
The
unexpected decision by the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has prompted enterprises,
which plan to list next year, to apply for listing right at this moment. I
think MoF has its reasons for making this decision. The tax incentive regime
has been resulting in the loss of revenue in budget collection. However, I
think, it would have been better if MoF had announced this one or two years in
advance.
Several billion dollars will be injected in
When
Vietnamese enterprises and investors can find common voice, this will be the
driving force for development. Our funds are considered to have the fastest
disbursement rate in
There
are many opportunities for financial investors here, in
Source: VietnamNet