Energy giant Petrovietnam asked to deeply cut stake in PVcomBank by 2026

The Vietnamese government has required state-run Petrovietnam to reduce its holding in Hanoi-based PVcomBank to 15% from the current 52% before 2026 to focus on its core businesses.

The requirement is part of a restructuring plan for Petrovietnam from now to end-2025. The group will have to submit a roadmap to cut its stake in the commercial bank, under the central bank’s supervision.

PVcomBank was established in September 2013 on the back of a merger between Petrovietnam Finance Joint Stock Corporation (PVFC) and WesternBank.

The bank is now 6.67% owned by Morgan Stanley International Holdings Inc, which bought a 10% stake in PVFC in 2007 when the Vietnamese firm went public. The bank is 41.34% owned by other shareholders, including a combined 31.86% by three groups of shareholders as of March 2018.

PVcomBank has charter capital of VND9 trillion ($367.4 million) and total assets of VND196.5 trillion ($8 billion) as of June 2022, according to its latest financial statement.

Under the government-approved restructuring plan, Petrovietnam will have to divest entirely from non-core business and reshuffle its operations to become a leading energy group in the region.

Its core businesses include petrochemicals, downstream oil and gas services, clean energies such as offshore wind, gas supply, among others.

Remaining wholly owned by the state, Petrovietnam will need to grow annual revenues 3-6.5% and increase contribution to the state budget by around 10% yearly.