Ms. Le Thi Bang Tam, an independent member of the Board of Directors of the Vietnam Dairy Products Joint Stock Company (Vinamilk), President of HDBank, assumed the position on July 25.
Vinamilk, Vietnam’s largest dairy company, had announced that it would elect the new Chair on July 24, after the general meeting of shareholders in 2015 agreed not to allow the Chair of the Board of Directors to hold the post of CEO.
Ms. Mai Kieu Lien left this position on July 25, 2015 to serve as the CEO. Ms. Le Thi Bang Tam, an independent member of the Board of Directors, was elected as her successor.
Ms. Le Thi Bang Tam (born in 1947) participated in the management of Vinamilk in April 2013, and is still the Chair of the HCM City Development Bank (HD Bank).
Previously, Tam was the Deputy Minister of Finance (1995-2006) and Chair of the State Capital Investment Corporation (SCIC) (2006-2008). She holds a doctorate of economics from the Leningrad University of Finance and Economics (former Soviet Union) and a certificate of international finance from the North University London (UK).
Mai Kieu Lien’s resignation from the Chairmanship was regretted by shareholders.
Vinamilk is one of the largest companies on the Vietnam Stock Exchange with a value of $5.5 billion. This year the company targets to earn VND38,424 billion of revenue and VND6,830 billion of after-tax profit, up 10% and 13% compared with 2014.
The company was established in 1976 as the state-owned Southern Coffee-Dairy Company, to nationalize and take over the operations of three previously private dairy factories in South Vietnam: Thong Nhat, Truong Tho (formerly owned by Friesland Foods, best known for its production of condensed milk that was widely distributed across the South), and Dielac (Nestlé). It was then renamed to United Enterprises of Milk Coffee Cookies and Candies in 1978. Vietnam Dairy Company was formally established in 1993.
In 2003, following its IPO at the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, the company legally changed its name to Vietnam Dairy Products Joint Stock Company (Vinamilk). The principal activities of the Vinamilk are production and distribution of condensed milk, powdered milk, fresh milk, soya milk, yogurts, ice-cream, cheese, fruit juice, coffee and other products derived from milk.
The State Capital Investment Corporation (SCIC) holds 45.06% of the shares of Vinamilk; 6% are owned by other Vietnamese investors, of which 0.3% are owned by CEO Mai Kieu Lien and foreign investors hold under 49% of the shares.
In the 10 years since it was equitised, Vinamilk saw revenues grow by 22 per cent a year on average. Last year its revenues were nearly VND35 trillion ($1.61 billion), or 8.3 times up from the 2004 figure.
The company's capital and assets have also increased many times since 2004. For instance, its charter capital has risen from VND1.569 trillion to over VND10 trillion. Vinamilk's market cap is over $5 billion, making it second largest company in the Vietnamese stock market.
Vinamilk is the largest dairy firm in Viet Nam with a 53 percent market share in the liquid milk segment, 84 percent in yogurt, and 80 percent in condensed milk.
Furthermore, the company has been successful in developing its export markets, shipping over $200 million worth of products to 31 countries and territories. Average export growth in the last 10 years has been 17 percent a year.
The key export markets are in the Middle East and Asia, and the company seeks to expand into Europe, Africa, and South America.
Exports have accounted for 8-24 per cent of revenues in the last decade.
Mai Kieu Lien has been working for Vinamilk since 1976, holding leadership positions during much of the company's modernisation.
She is the only Vietnamese manager in Forbes' "Asia's 50 Power Businesswomen" list and was described by the magazine to be dynamic and having played a key role in transforming Vinamilk not only "into one of Vietnam's most profitable brands but also a respected name across Asia".