Vietnamese EV maker VinFast's shares tumble for second day after Nasdaq debut

Shares of Vietnamese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer VinFast dropped for a second straight session on Thursday, down 34% from Wednesday and 46% from its Tuesday debut.

The stock closed at $20 per share. With 2.3 billion shares (coded VFS), the EV startup had a market capitalization of $46 billion, down from the $69 billion and $85 billion recorded in the previous two days ($30.11 per share on Wednesday and $37.06 on Tuesday).

Out of the 2.3 billion shares, currently, only 4.5 million can be traded. Regulatory filings in the U.S. show Vietnamese tycoon Pham Nhat Vuong directly and indirectly controls 99% of VinFast’s outstanding shares, mostly through his conglomerate Vingroup.

Just $44 million worth of VinFast's shares were traded on Thursday, compared to the $27 billion recorded in Tesla (TSLA), which decreased 2.8%.

The number of VFS shares changing hands on Thursday was more than 1.78 million. The figures in the debut and the second session were over three million and nearly 6.8 million, respectively.

VinFast’s public listing followed the completion of a deal with Black Spade Acquisition, a SPAC, on Monday, U.S. time.

SPACs are shell companies that raise capital in an initial public offering (IPO) and use the cash to merge with a private company in order to take it public, usually within two years.

Speaking from the U.S. a few hours after closing the Nasdaq offering of VFS on Tuesday, global CEO Le Thi Thu Thuy said it was "a bit surprising" that VinFast's capitalization hit more than $85 billion on its debut.

"When I asked the investment banks, most said that the stock would be red, which means that VFS would drop below $10 a share in the first session," she said.

Thuy said she and her associates initially believed that they would reach a market capitalization of over $23 billion.

The CEO added that VinFast's listing aimed to raise a large amount of capital, not to "do marketing".

VinFast had delivered almost 19,000 EVs including the VF e34, VF 5, VF 8, and VF 9 models to the U.S. market as of June 30, 2023. It is also preparing for the upcoming launch of the VF 3, VF 6, and VF 7 models in the Vietnamese and global markets.

VinFast looks forward to building upon its rapid expansion as the company rolls out next-generation EVs and solutions, and carries out its strategy of expanding its footprint globally.

The company has established a strong foothold in its Vietnamese home market by rolling out its own charging network spanning across 63 cities and provinces, and plans to expand it further in the coming years. VinFast has also established a company-owned retail and service network of over 122 VinFast stores worldwide.

The firm, part of Vietnamese private conglomerate Vingroup JSC, is working to strengthen its position in the global EV market by leveraging new partnerships with distributors and dealers in select markets, including North America, Europe, Vietnam, and Southeast Asia.

On July 28, VinFast broke ground at its new EV manufacturing facility in the U.S. The event marked a significant step toward its global expansion and supply chain development in North America. A total investment of $4 billion is expected to go into the project, with half for the first phase.

VinFast was founded in 2017 with a vision to drive the global smart electric vehicle revolution. It operates a manufacturing complex in northern Vietnam’s Hai Phong that boasts up to 90% manufacturing automation and an annual production capacity of up to 300,000 units per year in phase one.

VinFast was the second Vietnamese company listed on Nasdaq. The first was Cavico which was delisted in 2011 due to violations regarding information disclosure.