The Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) will float more than 603 million new shares, or 15 percent of its stake to the Republic of Korea’s KEB Hana Bank under its resolution No.696/NQ-BIDV issued on July 22.

 

The deal will help BIDV increase its charter capital by more than 20.29 trillion VND (873.6 million USD).

 

Both banks will continue processing required procedures to complete their deal soon.

 

BIDV, among Vietnam’s leading lenders by assets, has 1.37 quadrillion VND in total assets. In the first nine months of the year, it made such achievements as being in Global 2,000 list by Forbes-an annual ranking of the world’s biggest and most powerful public company, and having credit rating upgraded one notch from B to BB- by the global ratings agency Standard & Poor’s.

 

As for KEB Hana Bank, it is a member of the Hana Financial Group - one of the largest financial corporations in Asia. Besides a strong domestic network, the bank has set up 144 transaction points in 24 countries across the world. As of June 30, KEB Hana Bank’s total assets worth 308.3 billion USD. Last year, it was recognised as the best retail bank in the RoK.

 

Acquiring BIDV’s shares will help the Korean bank expand its presence in the Southeast Asian country, whose economic performance has been stellar for years with many Korean companies venturing into the nation.

 

According to Vietnamese regulations, foreign ownership ratio at Vietnamese banks is capped at 30 percent of charter capital. The State currently owns 95.28 percent of BIDV stake. After the share sale to KEB Hana Bank, the State ownership will be reduced to 80.28 percent. -VNA