VOF investee Quoc Cuong Gia L

RNS Number : 9993Q

VinaCapital Vietnam Opp. Fund Ld

12 August 2010

 



RNS Reach

12 August 2010

VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Limited

VOF investee Quoc Cuong Gia Lai lists on Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange

Ho Chi Minh City - VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Limited ('VOF'), an AIM-quoted investment vehicle focused on Vietnam, announces the successful IPO of its investee company Quoc Cuong Gia Lai (QCG), one of Vietnam's leading residential real estate developers.

QCG listed its entire charter capital totalling 60.2 million shares on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange on 9 August 2010 at an opening price of VND42,500 (USD2.23) per share.

QCG, formerly traded on Vietnam's OTC market, was established in 1994 as a private company. In addition to real estate development, the company has substantial investments in rubber production and hydropower development.

QCG's residential properties target the low- to mid-range of the residential market; which are the sectors expected to see the greatest demand over the next five to ten years. The company has a total cleared land area of 76ha available for sale, as lots or for residential development, in Ho Chi Minh City. Six major apartment and office projects are under development, which will be the company's key earnings drivers over the next five years.

VOF holds a 13.5 percent stake in QCG valued at USD19.4 million on 9 August, making the investment one of the fund's top five equity holdings. VOF has recorded an unrealised gain of USD9.1 million, or 122.9 percent, in QCG - with most of this gain occurring in OTC trading during late 2009 and early 2010.

QCG had net profits of VND86 billion (USD4.5 million) and net revenues of VND236 billion (USD12.4 million) in the first half of 2010. The firm targets net profits of VND360 billion (USD18.9 million) on revenues of VND1.1 trillion (USD56.7 million) this year, increases of 187.8 and 283.5 percent year-on-year, respectively.

"Our investment in Quoc Cuong Gia Lai has already seen substantial unrealised gains, and we continue to see potential for further gains given the persistent and high demand for new housing in the low to mid-range of the market," says Andy Ho, managing director of VOF's investment manager.

"QCG has set high targets for the second half of 2010 due to expected gains in the residential real estate market. VOF's investment in QCG is part of our strategy of increasing the liquidity of real estate sectors holdings, and the successful IPO is an important step in realising this strategy," Andy says.

Notes to Editors:

VinaCapital Group is a leading asset management, investment banking and real estate consulting firm with unrivalled experience in the Vietnamese market. VinaCapital Group was founded in 2003 and has grown from a single USD10 million fund to a diversified investment firm with USD1.8 billion in assets under management as of July 2010.

VinaCapital manages three closed-end funds trading on the London Stock Exchange's Alternative Investment Market (AIM). These are: VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund (VOF); VinaLand Limited (VNL); and Vietnam Infrastructure Limited (VNI). VinaCapital also co-manages the DFJ VinaCapital technology venture capital fund with Draper Fisher Jurvetson. More information is available at www.vinacapital.com.

More information on VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Limited is available at www.vinacapital.com/vof

Enquiries:

Michael L. Gray

VinaCapital Investment Management Limited

Investor Relations/Communications

[phone]

[e-mail]

Philip Secrett

Grant Thornton Corporate Finance, Nominated Adviser

[phone]

[e-mail]

Hiroshi Funaki

LCF Edmond de Rothschild Securities, Broker

[phone]

[e-mail]

Alastair Hetherington

Financial Dynamics, Public Relations (Hong Kong)

[phone]

[e-mail]

Andrew Walton

Financial Dynamics, Public Relations (London)

[phone]

[e-mail]

 

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