Vietnam ministry opposes higher foreign ownership of local airlines

By Quang Minh
Tue, June 11, 2024 | 3:39 pm GMT+7

Vietnam’s Planning and Investment Ministry has opposed a proposal by Bamboo Airways to increase the foreign ownership limit in domestic airlines to 49% from the current 34%.

 A Bamboo Airways aircraft. Photo courtesy of the airline.

A Bamboo Airways aircraft. Photo courtesy of the airline.

In a document sent to the prime minister early April to give its assessment of the proposal, the ministry has said that under World Trade Organization commitments, Vietnam is not obligated to open up the domestic aviation market, only to allow foreign airlines to provide services in the country through their rep offices or agents.

Therefore, Vietnam holds the right to open up the domestic aviation market as it chooses in its own interests, it said.

Decree 89/2019/ND-CP, dated November 15, 2019 caps foreign holding in a Vietnamese aviation company at 34%.

Lifting the current foreign ownership limit (FOL) will impact the possibility of Vietnamese businesses attracting foreign strategic partners for doing business, improving administration, expanding their international network and gaining a better market share, the ministry argued.

“Increasing the FOL to 49% should be carefully considered,” it said, noting that “Vietnam had once raised the limit, but reduced it to 34% later.”

“At the moment, there is no legal basis to consider Bamboo Airways’s proposal to raise the FOL in the aviation industry to 49%,” it stressed.

Meanwhile, Bamboo Airways has said that it has invited many foreign investors to invest in the carrier and found that while there is great interest in Vietnamese carriers given the local market’s huge potential, the FOL of 34% is not attractive enough.

The 34% FOL does not provide investors with sufficient voting rights, even the desirable vetoing right. “This makes investing in Vietnam’s aviation industry highly risky,” the carrier has said.

Therefore, it would be desirable to relax the FOL and increase it to 49% as previously regulated by Decree 76/2007/ND-CP, dated May 9, 2007, it has argued.

Foreign ownership of Vietnamese carriers remains low at present. As of October 2023, foreign investors held a combined 5.93% in national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines, most of it (5.62%) by Japan’s Ana Holding Inc, according to its 2023 annual report.

Meanwhile, foreign ownership in low-cost carrier Vietjet had reached 17.32% as of end-2023, with no investor holding more than 5%.

Comments (0)
  • Read More
Real estate major Novaland wins key approval for $5 bln project in central Vietnam

Real estate major Novaland wins key approval for $5 bln project in central Vietnam

Novaland Group (HoSE: NVL), one of Vietnam’s leading property developers, has received investment approval for its flagship project worth $5 billion in the central province of Lam Dong after years of delay due to legal obstacles.

Real Estate - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 4:20 pm GMT+7

Vietnam's plastics heavyweights Tien Phong, Binh Minh report profit surges

Vietnam's plastics heavyweights Tien Phong, Binh Minh report profit surges

Tien Phong Plastic (HNX: NTP) recorded pre-tax profit of nearly VND949 billion ($36.04 million) in the first nine months of the year, exceeding its full-year target by 10.85%, while Binh Minh Plastic (HoSE: BMP) achieved record net profit of VND350 billion ($13.29 million) in Q3, surpassing its VND330 billion milestone set in the previous quarter.

Companies - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 4:17 pm GMT+7

Vietnam, Finland firms sign multiple MoUs on satellite, cybersecurity, aviation partnerships

Vietnam, Finland firms sign multiple MoUs on satellite, cybersecurity, aviation partnerships

A series of cooperation agreements were signed between Vietnam and Finland on Tuesday, within the framework of Party chief To Lam's official visit to Helsinki, while bilateral relationship was lifted to a "strategic partnership".

Economy - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 12:43 pm GMT+7

Trung Nam Ca Na seeks to convert agri-forest land for $147 mln industrial park in central Vietnam

Trung Nam Ca Na seeks to convert agri-forest land for $147 mln industrial park in central Vietnam

Industrial park developer Trung Nam Ca Na is seeking approval to convert about 170 hectares of agricultural and forest land for the construction of a VND3,875 billion ($147 million) project in Vietnam’s central coastal province of Khanh Hoa.

Industrial real estate - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 10:54 am GMT+7

PV Power's arm posts 5-fold jump in Q3 profit on margin recovery

PV Power's arm posts 5-fold jump in Q3 profit on margin recovery

PetroVietnam Power Nhon Trach 2 JSC (HoSE: NT2) reported a sharp rebound in third-quarter earnings as improved margins and higher revenue lifted profits nearly fivefold from a year earlier.

Companies - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 8:37 am GMT+7

TCBS overtakes SSI to become Vietnam’s largest securities company by market cap

TCBS overtakes SSI to become Vietnam’s largest securities company by market cap

Over 2.3 billion shares of Techcom Securities JSC (TCBS) debuted on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HoSE) on Tuesday. The stock, TCX, recorded the highest price and the largest market capitalization in the Vietnamese securities sector.

Finance - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 10:27 pm GMT+7

Indonesia’s palm oil industry becomes investment magnet

Indonesia’s palm oil industry becomes investment magnet

Indonesia’s palm oil sector attracted IDR52.7 trillion, or approximately $3.2 billion, in investment during the first nine months of this year, with the money going into enabling the country to capture more value out of its top commodity, the country’s Ministry of Investment reported.

Southeast Asia - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 9:34 pm GMT+7

Indonesia reports strong job, investment growth

Indonesia reports strong job, investment growth

The Indonesian Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs reported strong job and investment growth during the first year of President Prabowo Subianto’s administration, compared with the first year under his predecessor.

Southeast Asia - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 9:29 pm GMT+7

Singapore grants conditional approval for 1GW low-carbon power import from Malaysia

Singapore grants conditional approval for 1GW low-carbon power import from Malaysia

Singapore has granted conditional approval to import 1 GW of low-carbon electricity from the Malaysian state of Sarawak, marking a new phase in the energy partnership between the two countries.

Southeast Asia - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 9:26 pm GMT+7

Margin lending in Vietnam’s stock market hits record, but not worrisome

Margin lending in Vietnam’s stock market hits record, but not worrisome

Despite margin debt in Vietnam’s stock market surging sharply, experts believe that current margin pressure is not yet a major concern as top securities firms have significantly strengthened their capital buffers.

Finance - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 4:23 pm GMT+7

Lenders in Vietnam now in low-rate lending race: ACB exec

Lenders in Vietnam now in low-rate lending race: ACB exec

The biggest “headache” for banks in Vietnam now is that profit margins are getting thinner, said CEO of Asia Commercial Bank (ACB) Tu Tien Phat.

Banking & Finance - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 4:00 pm GMT+7

PV Gas - 35 years of innovation and technological leadership in Vietnam’s gas industry

PV Gas - 35 years of innovation and technological leadership in Vietnam’s gas industry

Over the past 35 years of establishment and development (1990-2025), PV Gas, a subsidiary of state-owned giant Petrovietnam, has affirmed its pioneering position in Vietnam’s gas industry, marked by a series of groundbreaking achievements in science and technology.

Companies - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 3:45 pm GMT+7

Vietnam's consumer finance major F88 achieves 90% of year's profit target after 9 months

Vietnam's consumer finance major F88 achieves 90% of year's profit target after 9 months

F88 Investment JSC (F88), a leading consumer finance company in Vietnam, reported a cumulative pre-tax profit of VND603 billion ($22.88 million) in the first nine months of 2025, a 2.5-fold increase year-on-year, reaching 90% of its full-year target of VND673 billion.

Companies - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 3:15 pm GMT+7

Vietnam corporate earnings to be driven by credit expansion, trading activity, property recovery

Vietnam corporate earnings to be driven by credit expansion, trading activity, property recovery

With Q3 earnings season underway, results are expected to come in broadly in line with expectations. Financials should remain the largest contributors, benefiting from credit expansion and trading activity, while real estate continues to recover as project launches and sales rates improve, writes Tung Dang, associate director at Dragon Capital.

Economy - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 2:33 pm GMT+7

Inland port opens in southern Vietnam province Tay Ninh, set to become border logistics hub

Inland port opens in southern Vietnam province Tay Ninh, set to become border logistics hub

The 16.5-hectare Tan Cang-Moc Bai inland port in Tay Ninh province, southern Vietnam has been opened, offering logistics services and handling customs clearance for imports and exports.

Infrastructure - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 12:03 pm GMT+7

State-managed property trading centers will help curb speculation, price manipulation: expert

State-managed property trading centers will help curb speculation, price manipulation: expert

Establishment of state-managed real estate trading centers is expected to create a transparent transaction channel, helping control and limit speculation and price manipulation in the Vietnamese market.

Real Estate - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 8:37 am GMT+7