S Korea’s SK to sell part of stake in Vietnam conglomerate Vingroup

South Korean chaebol SK Group plans to sell about 50.86 million VIC shares of Vietnam’s conglomerate Vingroup as part of its investment portfolio restructuring strategy.

With a 6.05% stake, SK’s group financial vehicle SK Investment Vina II PTE is currently the biggest foreign shareholder in Vingroup.

After the sale, SK will own a 4.72% stake in the Vietnamese group and no longer be a major shareholder, as Vingroup's filing showed on Friday.

The transaction will be conducted via put-through from January 16 to February 14. The sale is estimated to generate about VND508.1 billion ($20.03 million) based on the current market price, it said.

Vingroup shares, listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange under ticker VIC, closed Friday at VND40,500 ($1.6) each.

“SK and Vingroup are still discussing a number of cooperation opportunities to maximize development potential in the coming time,” Nguyen Viet Quang, Vingroup’s general director, said in a separate statement.

In May 2019, SK acquired a 6.1% stake in Vingroup for $1 billion. VIC shares were priced at VND113,000 ($4.45) at that time. The South Korean chaebol purchased 154.3 million VIC shares directly and 51.4 million VIC shares from retailer VinCommerce, which is now known as WinCommerce and is owned by Masan Group. Following the deal, SK Group held a total of 205.7 million VIC shares, or a 6.15% stake.

A 2023 VIC report revealed that SK Group owns nearly 231.5 million shares in the Vietnamese conglomerate, making it the fourth-largest shareholder after Vietnam Investment Group JSC, Vingroup chairman Pham Nhat Vuong, and VMI JSC.

In September 2024, Masan (HoSE: MSN) acquired a 7.1% stake in WinCommerce from SK Group for $200 million. In November last year, SK completed the transfer of 76 million MSN shares, reducing its stake in Masan to 3.67% and thereby relinquishing its status as a major shareholder.