New chapter for electronics major Viettronics after Geleximco takeover

Shares of Vietnam Electronics and Informatics Corp, or Viettronics (HoSE: VEC) - long inactive and trading mostly between VND8,000-9,000 ($0.34) apiece for many years - have surged more than sevenfold over the past 11 months, rising to VND60,700 ($2.3) on Wednesday.

The rally has accelerated over the past month, although trading volumes remain modest, at tens of thousands of shares per session.

The share spike followed a change in ownership. Earlier in November, the State Capital Investment Corporation (SCIC) said it had sold its 38.5 million shares, equivalent to 87.97% of Viettronics, via an off-HoSE auction.

The lot was offered at a starting value of VND964.3 billion ($36.56 million), or around VND25,000 ($0.95) per share.

Four bidders participated (two institutions and two individuals), and private multi-sector group Geleximco won the auction at more than VND2.56 trillion ($97.13 million), 2.66 times the starting price, or roughly VND74,300 ($2.82) per share.

On November 10, Geleximco appointed Vu Van Hau, born in 1971, as Viettronics’s CEO and legal representative. Hau was recently named chairman and CEO of Geleximco.

Geleximco founder Vu Van Tien shifted from chairman and CEO to head of the group’s founders’ council. Separately, lender ABBank announced changes to its senior management, appointing Tien as chairman and Dao Manh Khang as vice chairman.

Viettronics was established in 1970 as the Electronics Research Department under the Ministry of Machinery and Metallurgy, now the Ministry of Industry and Trade. It has grown into one of Vietnam’s major producers of consumer electronics, industrial electronics, medical electronics, telecommunications equipment, and IT products, including karaoke players, speakers, amplifiers, freezers, and rice cookers.

Geleximco said its acquisition aligns with the group’s long-term industrial and high-tech development strategy and supports national targets set out in the Politburo's Resolution 57-NQ/TW on industrial development to 2030, with a vision until 2045, in line with the Politburo's Resolution 68 on developing the private economy.

“Our investment aims both to revive a company with a long history in electronics and advance our strategy of focusing on industrial and high-tech manufacturing,” a Geleximco representative said.

Years of losses, shrinking revenues

Viettronics’s annual revenue exceeded VND1 trillion ($37.92 million) between 2016 and 2018 but had fallen to about VND300 billion by 2024. The company has reported six consecutive years of losses.

Operations showed a slight recovery in the first nine months of 2024, posting VND281 billion ($10.65 million) in revenue, up 53% year-on-year, and a profit of VND2.7 billion ($102,370) after a loss of VND10.3 billion a year earlier.

Most of the improvement came in Q3, with VND120 billion in revenue and VND1.9 billion in net profit, driven by restructuring and cost cuts.

The company cited limited resources and intense competition among contractors as key challenges, along with difficulties in securing viable projects and cautious capital use.

As of Q3, Viettronics had an accumulated loss of VND51 billion ($1.93 million). Its capital structure remains relatively safe, with total liabilities of VND223 billion but only VND8.7 billion in short-term borrowings. It held VND103 billion in cash and equivalents and VND143 billion in held-to-maturity investments.

A notable asset base includes more than 10.4 hectares of land under the parent company and its subsidiaries or affiliates in major cities. These properties include both long-term leases and plots with expired lease terms pending renewal.

Following the ownership change, Viettronics announced December 9 as the record date for an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting scheduled for January 8, 2026, where investors are expected to hear updates and strategic plans under Geleximco’s control.