Foreign investors purchase Vietnamese credit institutions’ shares

Decree No. 01/2014 on foreign investors’ purchase of shares of Vietnamese credit institutions, comed into effect on 02/20/2014. Accompanied by the open market acccess regulatlions of Law on Investment 2014, Law on Enterprise 2014, foreign investors also have taken conspicuous notice of purchasing shares of Vietnamese credit institutions.

Pursuant to Decree No. 01/2014 s’ regulations, foreign investors includes:

• Foreign individual: person who does not bear Vietnamese nationality;
• Foreign orgaizations consist of:
• Organizations which are set up and operate under foreign law and branches of these organizations in foreign countries or/and in Vietnam.
• Organizations, closed funds, member funds, companies of securities investment which are set up and operate in Vietnam with rate of contributed capital amount of foreign parties more than 49%.
• Foreign strategic investor means a foreign organization which has financial capacity and has a written commitment of competent person to bind its long-term benefit with Vietnamese credit institutions and support Vietnamese credit institutions in transferring modern technologies; developing banking products and services, raising the administration and financial capacity.

Foreign investors could choose from below forms of share purchase:

1. Foreign investors purchase shares of shareholders of joint-stock credit institutions.
2. Foreign investors purchase shares in case where joint-stock credit institutions sell shares to increase charter capital or sell treasury shares.
3. Foreign investors purchase shares in case where credit institutions transform the legal form into joint-stock credit institutions.

However, foreign investors have to follow regulations of holding in a Veietnamese credit institution:

• Foreign individual: shall not exceed 5% of registered capital
• Foreign organization: shall not exceed 15% of registered capital
• Foreign strategic investor: shall not exceed 20% of registered capital
• Foreign investor and the concerned persons of such foreign investor: shall not exceed 20% of registered capital

Notice:

Total shareholding level of foreign investors shall not exceed 30% of charter capital of a Vietnamese commercial bank.

Foreign investors changing convertible bonds of Vietnamese credit institutions into stocks must adhere to the holdings and holding conditions prescribed in this Decree.

Currency used in share purchase and sale transactions:

• Currency used in foreign investors’ share purchase and sale transactions in Vietnamese banks is Vietnam dong.
• The selling prices of shares of an unlisted Vietnamese credit institution to foreign investors shall be determined through auction or agreement form.
• The selling prices of shares of a listed joint-stock credit institution to foreign investors shall comply with legislations on securities and securities market.

If foreign investors would like to purchase shares of Vietnamese credit institutions, pleased contact Viet An Law Firm to get consultancy with us about related conditions of purchasing credit insitutions’ share as well as procedure issues so that the progress of investment could be executed conviniently.