Securities firms’ M&A deals bolster Vietnam market dynamics: experts

A slew of acquisitions of securities firms by both Vietnamese and foreign investors over the last year or so have been driven by more than profit making through margin lending, experts say.

While the deals have taken place amidst robust growth in stock market liquidity and the VN-Index, other purposes have been at play, including providing stock issuance consulting, increasing capital bases and facilitating listings, they add.

Besides, securities companies themselves benefit from M&A deals, which can enhance their growth and development, they note.

Most recently, Public Bank Vietnam, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Malaysia’s Public Bank Berhad, completed its acquisition of RHB Securities Vietnam.

The acquisition followed the issuance of a permit by the State Securities Commission of Vietnam (SSC) to rename RHB Securities Vietnam as Public Bank Securities Vietnam Company Limited (PBSV).

On February 19, Public Bank Vietnam signed an agreement to take over the entire equity of RHB Securities from Malaysia’s RHB Investment Bank. The deal was slated for completion in the third quarter of this year.

On June 4, SSC approved the equity transfer, highlighting the likelihood of Public Bank Vietnam’s complete acquisition of RHB Securities.

In mid-June, Hoang Ngan Ha transferred 6.8 million shares, or a 49% stake in Viet Tin Securities JSC (VTSS), to Singapore-based Tin Global Pte. Ltd before resigning as a VTSS board member. The firm is now 49% held by Tin Global, 49% by Minh Thanh Tourist., JSC, and 2% by Nguyen Thi Thuy Trang.

Another deal that took place last year involved LPBank Securities JSC (LPBS), formerly Lien Viet Securities JSC, founded in 2009 as a subsidiary of Him Lam Corporation.

In 2017, the securities company’s then chairman, Duong Cuong Minh, transferred VND223.75 billion ($8.79 million) in contributed capital, or 89.5% of its stake, to Nguyen Thi Bich Hong. Following this transfer, Hong succeeded Duong Cuong Minh as the chairwoman of LPBS.

In mid-July 2023, Hong sold 21 million LPBS shares, reducing her ownership from 89.5% to 5.5%. Subsequently, Vu Thanh Hue succeeded her as the company’s chairwoman.

Meanwhile, Pham Thu Hang acquired 16.5 million shares, equivalent to a 66% stake in LPBS.

Last November, Royal International Securities JSC (IRS) also saw ownership changes. Le Thanh Ha, Nguyen Thi Gia and Le Hong Thao transferred two million shares (6.75%), 10.4 million shares (34.58%), and 10 million shares (33.4%), respectively, to IRS chairman Le Thanh, which saw his ownership rise to 82.95%.

Other M&A transactions that occurred before the above-mentioned deals included M-Service, operator of e-wallet service MoMo, acquiring a 49% stake in CV Securities Corporation.

Nguyen Thi Huong Giang, founder of Kim Nguu Vietnam JSC – the parent firm of the operator of the Vietnam-based investment app Tititada, acquired 40.22% of Saigonbank-Berjaya Securities JSC (SBBS).