Singapore sovereign fund GIC divests from Vietnamese consumer giant Masan
A group led by Singaporean sovereign fund Government of Singapore (GIC) has cut its ownership in Vietnam’s leading consumer goods manufacturer and retailer Masan Group to below 5%, losing its status as a major shareholder.
A consumer shops for Masan Group products. Photo courtesy of Dau Tu (Investment) newspaper.
GIC sold 545,800 shares in Masan Group, listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange as MSN, earlier this month, reducing its holding to 31.64 million shares, or a 2.21% stake.
Its affiliate, Ardolis Investment Pte Ltd., holds a 2.76% stake, leaving a combined 4.98%, down from 5.01% before the transaction.
GIC started to invest in Masan Group in 2016 and spent hundreds of millions of USD to buy 13.03% of the firm. In late 2020, the group started to divest from the Vietnamese firm, and one year after Masan Group acquired VinCommerce, the operator of the VinMart and VinMart+ retail chain from Vingroup.
GIC and its affiliates had sold nearly 33 million MSN shares in January 2022.
Masan earned a net profit of VND1.87 trillion ($75.46 million) in 2023, down 61% year-on-year, although its revenue rose 3% to VND78.25 trillion ($3.16 billion).
U.S.-based multi-asset investment firm Bain Capital in December agreed to increase its equity investment in Masan to $250 million from the previously announced $200 million.
In Vietnam, GIC has also invested in other majors like Vinhomes - the residential property developer under Vingroup, budget carrier Vietjet, tech firm FPT, and agribusiness The PAN Group.
MSN shares closed last Friday at VND78,500 ($3.17) apiece.
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