Pi Group member to delay bond interest payment, cites ailing property market

Phuong Dong Land, a subsidiary of Ho Chi Minh City-based real estate developer Pi Group, has said it will delay bond interest payments of more than VND53.5 billion ($2.1 million).

The firm has attributed the delay to unfavorable market developments that have impacted its revenue.

Bondholders will be consulted on extending the time to pay 2024’s first instalment of interest payments, the company said, without elaborating.

The bond package, coded PDCCH2124001, has a total value of VND900 billion ($35.36 million) with a term of 36 months. It comprises non-convertible bonds, with collateral but without warrants.

The annual interest for the first instalment is fixed at 10%; while that for subsequent instalments will be determined by the 12-month individual deposit interest rate of a commercial bank plus 4% per year.

The bond package was issued for implementing investment cooperation agreements and/or developing the Go Sao Housing Area project (also known as the Picity High Park) in Thanh Xuan ward, District 12, HCMC, which has Gia Cu Investment Development Company Limited as its investor.

Notably, the Phuong Dong Residential Area project in HCMC owned by Phuong Dong Land has been used as collateral for the bond package. This land lot was valued at VND1.31 trillion ($51.47 million) in November 2021.

When it was issued, the entire bond package was purchased by three professional individual investors.

Phuong Dong Land, established in August 2009, is headquartered at 92/18 Vuon Lai street, Quarter 1, An Phu Dong ward, District 12, HCMC.

It is the developer for the 8.2 hectare Phuong Dong Residential Area project (now PiCity Thu Duc), owned by Southern Salt Group Joint Stock Company until it was acquired by Pi Group, established by 46-year-old businessman Nguyen Xuan Thiem.

Thiem was CEO and legal representative of Phuong Dong Land from October 2017 to January 2021, before the positions were taken over by 27-year-old Nguyen Thanh Anh.

Thiem also holds 200,000 shares or 0.5% of the charter capital of Phuong Dong Land.

Other shareholders of Phuong Dong Land include Pi Group Development Investment Joint Stock Company (24%) and Ecoe Vietnam Joint Stock Company (75.5%).

On its website, Pi Group introduces itself as a real estate investor and developer established in 2008.

Its predecessor was Du An Dat Nen JSC, with online trading platform duandatnen.com.vn, specializing in land plot brokerage and distribution in the eastern part of HCMC.

Rising star

Pi Group attracted attention when it increased its capital sharply from VND50 billion in March 2017 to VND953.2 billion ($37.45 million under the current exchange rate) in December 2019. The company also changed its name to Pi Group Development Investment Joint Stock Company.

Another attention drawing factor for the group was that it kept striking M&A deals for real estate projects

The first of these was the Picity High Park project (formerly Go Sao project). On November 15, 2016, the Ba Ria-Vung Tau House Development Joint Stock Company (HDC) signed a contract to transfer its capital contribution for the Go Sao project to Nguyen Xuan Thiem.

On August 2, 2017, Pi Group replaced HDC as the parent company owning 100% of the charter capital of Gia Cu Investment Development Company Limited – developer of the Go Sao project.

Around the same time, the group also acquired Phuong Dong Land from Southern Salt Group Joint Stock Company (Sosal Group). Phuong Dong Land is the developer of the Phuong Dong Residential Area project (now PiCity Thu Duc), which features 169 adjacent houses in Tam Phu ward, Thu Duc district (now Thu Duc city).

In mid-2019, Thiem's company completed the acquisition of Dong Quang Knitting Joint Stock Company – investor of the 16,792-square meter Dong Quang Residential Area project at 544 Nguyen Anh Thu, Hiep Thanh ward, District 12.

Currently Pi Group's portfolio includes the Thanh Cong villa area in An Phu Dong ward, District 12 and the PiCity Sky Park project in An Binh ward, Di An town, neighboring Binh Duong province, being developed by Kim Son Land, another member of the group.

Besides real estate, the group has developed an online brokerage segment – the ECO.vn data platform operated by Ecoe Vietnam Joint Stock Company - a major shareholder of Phuong Dong Land.