S’pore’s Temasek buys 10 pct of Vietnam shrimp firm
Singaporean state-owned investor Temasek Holdings has acquired a 10 percent stake in a Vietnamese seafood exporter to take advantage of the growth potential in Vietnam’s aquaculture export industry.
Tamasek and the Minh Phu Seafood Export-Import Joint Stock Company, based in the southernmost province of Ca Mau, signed the deal Wednesday. However the acquisition value was not disclosed.
Minh Phu CEO Le Van Quang said the company picked up Temasek as strategic partner as the Singapore investor would assist the local exporter in administration skills and support its new market search.
Listed on the Hanoi Securities Trading Center, Minh Phu is Vietnam’s largest shrimp processor and exporter by both volume and value.
The company went public last year and has a market capitalization of about VND3.3 trillion (US$205 million). It is completing procedures to move listings to the Ho Chi Minh City market.
Minh Phu exports its shrimp products to major markets such as the US, Japan, and the European Union.
Temasek said it sees Minh Phu as being well-positioned to capitalize on the growth potential in Vietnam’s key aquaculture export sector.
Vietnam is the third largest shrimp producer in the world after China and Thailand, exporting over $1.3 billion worth of the seafood last year.
Minh Phu stocks (MPC) stayed unchanged to close at VND56,000 in Wednesday�s session.
According to Singapore�s Straits Times, on September 16, Temasek Holdings forwarded a proposal buy up 10 percent stake in the Vietnam Export-Import Bank (Eximbank).
(Source: Thanh Nien)
