Vietnam’s leading shrimp exporter to sell 50% stake to foreign partners
Vietnam’s leading shrimp exporter to sell 50% stake to foreign partners
The Minh Phu Seafood Group is expected to complete a transaction this year to generate capital for its planned expansion abroad. It has withdrawn from the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange.
In an interview with Bloomberg, CEO of Minh Phu, Le Van Quang, said that Minh Phu Group’s profits this year may increase by 55% to over VND1,416 billion ($66 million), while turnover may hit $1 billion, mainly thanks to exports.
Quang also said that Minh Phu is seeking foreign strategic partners to maximize the advantages of the company and its goal is to become a global shrimp producer by 2020.
Under current regulations, foreign investors can hold a maximum of 49% of the shares of listed companies. If Minh Phu does not withdraw from the HCM City stock exchange, it cannot sell more shares to raise necessary funds, Quang said.
He also disclosed that Minh Phu plans to raise its charter capital by 20% to VND840 billion ($40 million). According to Bloomberg, the price of Minh Phu shares rose more than four times last year, to reach a total value of VND7,500 billion ($357 million) at present.
According to Quang, dozens of investors from the US, Japan and Canada have expressed interest in the shares of Minh Phu. The corporation will choose one or two partners this year. In addition, Quang’s family also plans to reduce their ownership to the lowest level of 35%, from the current 79%.
Mitsui & Co. now holds a 31% stake in Minh Phu Hau Giang, a subsidiary of Minh Phu Group, while Red River Holding Fund and the Vietnam Investment Fund own 9.47% and 7.38% of shares of Minh Phu.
Minh Phu is a leading seafood and shrimp exporter in Vietnam. The group currently exports seafood to over 60 countries with a total turnover of $730 million last year. The three largest markets are the US, Japan and Europe.
Quang is looking for a strategic partner to help Minh Phu expand production and exports. The company is working with Edmond de Rothschild Suisse to find investors.
Minh Phu also plans to build shrimp processing and distribution plants in India, Indonesia and the Philippines in the next five years. The corporation has had a distributor in California (USA), supplying tiger prawns to large supermarket chains such as Wal-Mart and Costco Wholesale.
The company will also build a shrimp processing factory with an annual capacity of 40,000 tons this year in Ca Mau, and another plant of the same capacity in Hau Giang in the next three years.
