Viet Phat Group boss and real estate ambitions

Accumulating significant resources from the commercial sector, businessman Nguyen Van Binh, chairman of Viet Phat Group JSC, and his associates have been investing heavily in real estate, with many residential housing and industrial park projects and most recently a large-scale trade center in partnership with Aeon Mall Vietnam.

On January 1, the People's Committee of Ha Long town in Quang Ninh province, Hai Phong-based Viet Phat Group and Aeon Mall Vietnam Company Limited held a ceremony to launch northern Vietnam’s largest shopping center project in Bai Chay ward, Ha Long town. The VND5.2 trillion ($213.4 million) project is expected to come open on January 1, 2026.

Viet Phat Group was established in late 2018, operating in the field of metal and metal ore wholesale. Initially, the company had a charter capital of VND500 billion ($20.52 million) contributed by five individuals: Nguyen Van Binh (55%), Nguyen Xuan Truong (12.5%), Mai Quang Hop (10.5%), Nguyen Van Duc (9.5%), and Le Thi Thanh Le (Binh's wife) (12%). Following its latest adjustment in July 2023, the group's charter capital increased to VND1,768 billion ($72.55 million).

Viet Phat “captain” Nguyen Van Binh was born in 1973 in the northern province of Hai Duong. He started his career as a worker at Tam Bac Transport Cooperative in neighboring Hai Phong city. He became director of Hai Nam Co., Ltd. in 2001 and then director of Au Viet Co., Ltd. in 2006.

With his acumen, Binh recognized the high demand for transporting goods from Hai Phong to other provinces, so he decided to join the transportation field with the establishment of the Viet Phat Import Export Trading Investment JSC (VPG) in 2008 with a charter capital of VND25 billion ($1.03 million). In 2009, VPG quickly affirmed its position in northern Vietnam and deployed a nationwide cargo transportation system.

Two years after its inception, VPG started developing its brand in a new direction, expanding its operation to the fields of commerce, investment and production. Its investment in building a prefabricated steel frame factory, warehouses and wharves in Hai Duong created momentum for the company to expand its markets across the country.

In 2014, with a revenue of more than VND700 billion ($28.7 million), VPG became one of the leading enterprises operating in the mineral business. This was also the only legal entity in Nguyen Van Binh's Viet Phat ecosystem listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) as VPG since 2018.

Currently, VPG focuses on five main areas, including import and export of iron ore and coke coal, providing input materials for large manufacturing plants; cargo transport; leasing warehouses, wharves and storing goods; and real estate.

It is now a major trading partner of many foreign corporations providing fuels serving steel and iron ore production for big brands such as BHP Billiton of Australia, WelHunt of Taiwan (China), Vale of Brazil and Glencore International of Switzerland.

In 2022 alone, a consortium between VPG, Hanoi-based Danka Minerals and Russian energy firm SUEK AG was selected to implement a coal supply package for the commercial operation of Song Hau 1 Thermal Power Plant with the winning price of VND11,965 billion ($490.97 million).

In August 2023, VPG approved the signing of a thermal coal purchase and sales contract between a consortium of VPG, Pt Sumber Global Energy Tbk (Indonesia) and Pt Bintang Mitra Semestaraya Tbk (Indonesia) and Song Hau 1 Oil and Gas Electricity Project Management Unit, with an estimated value of VND6,024 billion ($247.2 million). The contract will be implemented across 365 days from the effective date.

Real estate ambitions

In the real estate field, VGP is a new name but has taken impressive steps. It has invested in a 2.4-hectare commercial housing area in Vinh Niem ward, Le Chan district (Viet Phat South City) with a total of VND435 billion ($17.85 million).

The company also engages in site leveling for the Northern Song Cam urban area project and building the 47-hectare Do Nong Industrial Cluster in Hai Phong’s An Duong district (VND660 billion or $27.08 million) and the 2.48-hectare Viet Phat housing project in Hanoi’s Bac Tu Liem district (VND800 billion or $32.83 million).

On May 25, 2022, VPG's board of directors approved a cooperation contract with Ecotech, a Hanoi-based leadership and corporate governance service provider, to invest in a VND1.5 trillion ($61.55 million) urban area project in Bo township, Kim Boi district, Hoa Binh province. Under the contract, VPG would contribute VND585 billion ($24 million) from 2022 to 2024. But in August 2023, VPG terminated the contract.

VPG and more specifically businessman Nguyen Van Binh have established many other legal entities to strongly engage in the real estate market.

In September 2017, VPG and individuals in the ecosystem contributed capital to establish Viet Phat Construction Real Estate Joint Stock Company (Viet Phat CRE) with a charter capital of VND685 billion ($28.1 million). The founding shareholders included VPG (15%), Nguyen Van Binh and his wife (50%), Nguyen Xuan Truong (15%), and Nguyen Van Duc and Mai Quang Hop (each 10%). In two years to September 2019, the company made two capital increases to VND1,985 billion ($81.45 million).

In August 2020, Viet Phat CRE contributed VND650 billion to set up Tien Thanh Industrial Park Investment JSC, with Nguyen Khoi, an independent member of the board of directors and chairman of the auditing board of VPG, as its director and legal representative.

The company is the developer of a 410.46-hectare Tien Thanh IP infrastructure construction and business project in Tien Lang district, Hai Phong city, with total expected investment capital of VND4,597 billion ($188.6 million).

In the industrial park segment, VPG has also shown interest in projects to build technical infrastructure in the Dong Hoa and and Le Ho industrial clusters with a total area of 150 hectares in Kim Bang district, Ha Nam province.

In October 2022, Binh and his associates established Newland Investment JSC - a legal entity that became the focus of attention when it won an auction for nearly 10,000 square meters of "golden land" in Hong Bang district, Hai Phong city only one month after its establishment, with the winning price of VND323.5 billion ($13.27 million), over VND3.16 billion higher than the starting price.

In July 2023, Newland started construction on a 1.8-hectare housing development and urban beautification project in Ha Ly ward, Hong Bang district (Royal River City) with a total investment of nearly VND715.6 billion ($29.4 million).

At the time of establishment, Newland had a charter capital of VND300 billion ($12.3 million), with VPG holding 90%, Pham Khuong Duy 5%, and Sai Van Kien 5%. Its legal representative and director is Pham Khuong Duy.

Meanwhile, the general director and legal representative of Viet Phap Group is Nguyen Thi Ngoc, 45. She is also in charge of Saigon MIA Investment JSC and Saigon 268 Trading and Development JSC. Saigon 268 is the developer of the 80-hectare An Sinh commercial housing project (Happy Home), located in the northeastern gateway to Ca Mau town in the southernmost province of Ca Mau.

Saigon MIA, formerly known as Quynh Luu Import-Export Co., Ltd., was established in 2014 with a charter capital of VND1 billion ($41,000), of which Nguyen Thi Hien held 90%. In early 2017, this company changed its name to Hoang Minh Anh Investment Company Limited, with Hien reducing her ownership ratio to 10%, Nguyen Thi Thanh Tam 10%, and Nguyen Thi Ngoc 80%. In November 2020, it was renamed Saigon MIA, with a charter capital of VND360 billion ($14.77 million) by March 2021.

Notably, in September 2021, VPG spent VND54 billion ($2.2 million) to buy 15% of Saigon MIA's shares from Nguyen Thi Hien (10%) and Nguyen Thi Thanh Tam (5%). However, by November 2022, VPG had transferred all of these shares for nearly VND56 billion.

Regarding shopping centers, together with its close partner Aeon Mall Vietnam, Viet Phat Group successfully put Aeon Mall Le Chan Hai Phong shopping mall into operation in 2020. Last November, the group was the only investor to apply for building a 11.66-hectare commercial center on Dang Van Tron street, Hiep Hoa ward, Bien Hoa town, Dong Nai province, with an expected investment capital of VND6.11 trillion or $250.72 million (Aeon Mall Bien Hoa).

In addition, on its website, this business said that it has been engaging in the construction, distribution and management of other projects including Green City Danang urban area in the central city of Danang; Mipec City View Ha Dong and Vinhomes Ocean Park Gia Lam in Hanoi; and wind power plants No. 5 and No. 6 in the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang.