Vietnamese unicorn seeks ways to attract capital from US stock market
VNG Corporation, a technology "unicorn" of Vietnam, is considering listing shares in the United States through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) at a valuation of about US$2-3 billion.
In April this year, another big corporation also revealed that it would get an initial public offering (IPO) at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) for a member company with the expectation of raising about US$3 billion. The estimated valuation of the member company is more than US$50 billion.
VNG and some Vietnamese businesses taking part in the "hot" market of SPACs in the US is a way to raise capital for promoting growth.
Neither VNG nor the above-mentioned group has confirmed this, but for VNG, the move is clearly within its strategic roadmap. In 2017, Le Hong Minh, Chairman and CEO of VNG and Vice Chairman of Nasdaq Group Bob McCooey signed an agreement to accelerate the IPO process between VNG and Nasdaq.
At that time, McCooey affirmed that one of the main reasons for reaching the agreement was that VNG was the first technology start-up in Vietnam to experience outstanding growth and it could be the focus and symbol for the Vietnamese economy.
Minh said that making the IPO in the US was a challenge, but it would create motivation for the corporation to move faster into the global market.
Raising capital on the US stock market can be a good opportunity for Vietnamese businesses. However, according to Vietnamese stock market managers, the target of SPACs is enterprises with a high growth rate of 20 – 30% per year, operating in key economic fields, and obtaining an annual profit of about US$8 million.
Therefore, to convince international investors, it is necessary for Vietnamese businesses to show off their attractive figures and stories.