67 Vietnamese firms miss bond payment deadlines: FiinRatings

As many as 67 Vietnamese companies had failed to meet their bond payment obligations as of March 8, totalling VND89,300 billion ($3.79 billion) or 55% of their outstanding bonds, according to FiinRatings, a leading domestic credit rating agency.

The repayment capabilities of those firms depend on their upcoming bond maturity, ability to raise capital from other sources, and cash flow from business activities.

The bad debt ratio of bond issuers which are real estate developers was an average 18.7%.

The value of corporate bonds maturing in 2023 is estimated at VND235 trillion ($9.97 billion), including VND100 trillion ($4.24 billion) of bonds issued by real estate firms.

Up to VND36.2 trillion ($1.54 billion) of bonds is set to mature in the second quarter of this year and VND35.4 trillion ($1.5 billion) in the third quarter.

FiinRatings expects new real estate-related policies would help market participants restructure their debts and aid investors in accessing credit.

In February, companies mobilized a combined VND2 trillion ($84.84 million) from three corporate bond issuances at home, including VND500 billion ($21.21 million) worth of 2.5-year bonds of Son Kim Real Estate Investment JSC in a private placement and VND1.5 trillion ($63.63 million) worth of bonds of Masan (HoSE: MSN) to the public.

Companies bought back a combined VND6 trillion ($254.34 million) of bonds before maturity in February, up 34.1% versus January, and up 36% year-on-year, according to FiinRatings.