Vietnam’s leading port operator Gemadept raises $2.4 mln in latest ESOP issue

Port operator and logistics heavyweight Gemadept (HoSE: GMD) has completed its employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) issuance, mobilizing over VND63 billion ($2.4 million) for working capital.

According to the company’s official report released on October 3, Gemadept distributed over 6.3 million shares at VND10,000 ($0.38) each on October 1-2. The total proceeds will be added to the company’s working capital.

Under the plan, all ESOP shares are subject to a two-year lock-up period. In the third year, 50% of the shares will be unlocked, with the remainder becoming freely tradable in the fourth year.

As of June 2025, Gemadept had 1,567 employees, 101 of whom were eligible for this ESOP round.

Among them, nine key executives – including chairman Do Van Nhan, vice chairman Chu Duc Khang, and CEO Nguyen Thanh Binh – collectively purchased 918,000 shares, or 102,000 shares each.

In addition, Khang’s son, Chu Duc Trung, bought 21,000 shares, bringing the total investment by executives and related parties to approximately VND9.39 billion ($356,200) in this issue.

After a strong rally starting late July, GMD reached a three-month high of over VND73,000 ($2.77) per share in mid-September before entering a correction.

GMD shares closed down 2.21% to VND66,500 ($2.52) each on Tuesday, roughly six times the ESOP issue price.

In the first half of this year, Gemadept reported VND2.77 trillion ($105.23 million) in net revenue, up 28.6% year-on-year, and VND1.27 trillion ($48 million) in pre-tax profit, up 3.3%.

The Gemadept board recently approved the purchase of eight million newly issued shares from ICD Nam Hai JSC, increasing Gemadept’s stake to 79%, or 15.8 million shares.

Gemadept is the only listed company in Vietnam that owns and operates a port system spanning from the North to the South, offering a wide range of services from dry ports to river and seaports.

Notably, it owns Gemalink, one of the largest deep-water ports in the country, and is ranked among the top 19 global ports capable of accommodating megaships.

In the logistics sector, the firm operates a network of distribution centers offering a range of services, including air cargo handling, warehousing, heavy-lift transportation, maritime and waterway logistics, cold chain logistics, and automobile logistics.