Update on Myanmar's state of emergency

RNS Number : 5247N

Myanmar Strategic Holdings Ltd

01 February 2021

 

1 February 2021

Myanmar Strategic Holdings Ltd.

("MSH" or the "Company")

Update on Myanmar's state of emergency

Myanmar Strategic Holdings Ltd. (LSE: SHWE), the independent developer and operator of consumer businesses located in Myanmar and Vietnam, notes the announcement by the Myanmar military, via the military-owned news channel Myawaddy News, that it has declared a state of emergency for a period of up to one year.

The announcement states that the Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Services, Min Aung Hlaing, will be in power for the duration of the state of emergency, while Vice President U Myint Shwe will serve temporarily as President. It was reported in the Myanmar Times that, earlier this morning, State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, President U Win Myint and other National League for Democracy ("NLD") officials across the country were detained by the military, ahead of the first parliamentary sessions, scheduled to take place later in the day.

Myanmar Strategic Holdings supports Myanmar's democratic transition and efforts to promote peace, human rights and development in the country. The Company's board condemns any type of violence and also wishes for a quick resolution of the current events.

From a business perspective, the Company's schools will continue to deliver their education services online and offline while its security services company will remain key to secure embassies, NGOs and national infrastructure. The Company's Ostello Bello boutique hostels remain closed, pursuant to the active COVID-19 restrictions in Myanmar. It is also worth noting that, further to the acquisition of Wall Street English Vietnam announced in May 2020, more than 50% of MSH's revenues originate from Vietnam, providing an attractive diversification to MSH's shareholders.

The Company is closely monitoring the situation and further updates will be released at the appropriate time.

For more information please visit  www.ms-holdings.com  or contact:

Myanmar Strategic Holdings Ltd. Richard Greer, Independent Non-Executive Chairman Enrico Cesenni, Founder and CEO	[e-mail] [e-mail]
Allenby Capital Limited (Broker) Nick Athanas Nick Naylor	[phone]
Yellow Jersey PR (Financial PR) Georgia Colkin Henry Wilkinson	[phone]

Notes to editors

Myanmar Strategic Holdings Ltd.

Myanmar Strategic Holdings Ltd. (LSE: SHWE) is an independent developer and manager of consumer businesses in Myanmar and Vietnam, two of the fastest growing economies in the world. The Company's portfolio currently focuses on Education, Services and Hospitality with the view to expand within the broader consumer sector.

Education sector:  the Company currently has exclusive development and franchising agreements with Wall Street English for ten English language centres across Myanmar over the course of the ten-year agreement. Two centres were opened in 2017, a third in August 2018, and a fourth in February 2020. As of April 2020, Wall Street English Myanmar served over 4,000 students since its inception.

In July 2020, the Company completed the acquisition of the Wall Street English business in Vietnam. Founded in 2013, the WSE Vietnam business operates through seven centres in Ho Chi Minh and Binh Dhuong serving over 6,000 students. 

The Company also operates a joint venture with Auston Institute of Management to develop and operate the Auston College Myanmar. The private school opened in May 2018 offering diplomas in Engineering Technology, Mechanical Engineering and Networking, Information Systems, and Security. English language learning is also provided by the Company's nearby Wall Street English centre. In February 2020, the Company announced a partnership with Liverpool John Moores University to provide high quality engineering training programmes for young, working professionals in Myanmar, to be taught by Auston College Myanmar's teaching staff at its Junction Square complex in Yangon.

The Company launched its first private K-12 international school, the Yangon American International School in Yangon, in August 2019.

Services sector:  through its acquisition of EXERA, the Company offers security, risk management and secure logistics services, including cash-in-transit. Founded in 2013, EXERA employs approximately 1,300 well-trained and high-quality security officers making it one of the largest security services providers in Myanmar.

Hospitality sector:  through its portfolio, the Company currently manages over 470 beds across four boutique hotels in three core tourist locations across Myanmar, operating under the award winning Ostello Bello budget hospitality brand. MSH operates an asset light strategy, entering into long-term operating and management agreements with local hotel owners.

Myanmar and Vietnam were among the fastest growing economies in Asia in 2017-2019 (Source: Asian Development Bank). In 2020, their annual GDP growth is expected to be respectively 6.0% and 6.3% (Source: Asian Development Bank). 

MSH is well positioned to provide investors early exposure to Myanmar's and Vietnam's strong economic fundamentals enhanced by ASEAN's wider growth prospects. 

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