(Photo: schaeffersresearch.com)
Hanoi (VNA) – Experts have predicted a banner year for merger andacquisition (M&A) activities in 2019 thanks to recent positivedevelopments.
According to Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Foreign Investment BusinessAssociation Nguyen Van Toan, M&A deals surged 160 percent to 9.9 billionUSD in 2018, making disbursement of foreign direct investment (FDI) hit arecord of 19.1 billion USD in the year.
This shows foreign investors’ increasing confidence in Vietnam as well asachievements in state divestment and equitisation, he affirmed.
Toan said Chinese enterprises will shift their investment strategies by pouringmore capital into building plants in Vietnam to take advantage of itsintegration commitments within ASEAN Plus, ASEAN and other free trade deals.
Despite expressing her optimism about M&A market in 2019, Dr Nguyen ThiViet Nga from the Academy of Finance said the sector still faces challenges.
As there are no full details for M&A in Vietnamese documents and laws, itis difficult for state agencies to manage and businesses to engage in theactivities, she said, adding that lacking competence about the field stops localfirms from finding suitable partners.
Serving as brokers for M&A deals, securities, financial and audit companieshave not performed their roles well due to limitations in regulations, humanresources, professionalism and information.
Nga also said opaque financial reports and overvaluation of M&A dealsaffect FDI attraction in the field.-VNA