Vincom Mega Mall Smart City, a large shopping and entertainment centre in Vinhomes Smart City. — VNS Photo Mai Hương

HÀ NỘI — Vingroup JSC has announced it will sell its stake in Vincom Retail and no longer be the parent company of the nationwide retail centre system.

Việt Nam's largest conglomerate, chaired by billionaire Phạm Nhật Vượng, said that its Board of Directors finalised an agreement to fully divest its contributed capital in SDI Trading Development and Investment JSC.

SDI currently holds over 99 per cent of the charter capital of Sado Trading Commercial JSC, a major shareholder in Vincom Retail JSC.

The transaction is anticipated to be conducted between March and the third quarter of 2024. Following the completion of the deal, SDI, Sado Company and Vincom Retail will no longer operate as Vingroup units. Vingroup now holds 18.82 per cent of the voting rights in Vincom Retail.

However, it will continue to manage the activities of the retail centres on behalf of Vincom Retail.

Nguyễn Việt Quang, deputy chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of Vingroup, said that despite Vincom Retail's successful operations and annual profits reaching billions of đồng, the decision was made as it is a crucial time for Vingroup to concentrate its resources on robust development.

The representative also clarified that there are no plans to acquire the prime locations of the commercial centres controlled by Vincom in order to convert them into residential projects.

The shopping centres will be developed according to their designated plans, with a clear purpose of commercial and service usage.

There will be no changes in the organisational structure, management and operation model of Vincom Retail, the CEO added.

Vingroup will sign a management contract with Vincom Retail, thereby supervising the activities of the shopping centres and ensuring the rights and benefits of tenants and store owners within the centres.

Sado holds the largest share in Vincom Retail JSC (VRE), owning 943.2 million shares, which is equivalent to 40.5 per cent of the company's charter capital and 41.51 per cent of its voting rights.

Sado acquired VRE shares starting from February 2021, following the merger with South Hanoi Housing and Urban Development Corporation. In April 2021, Sado officially became the largest shareholder of Vincom Retail by receiving an additional transfer of 751 million VRE shares.

In 2023, Vincom Retail achieved a net revenue of over VNĐ9.79 trillion and profit after tax of VNĐ4.4 trillion, up 33 per cent and 58.8 per cent over the previous year, respectively.

On the stock market, shares of Vingroup (VIC) rose 1.95 per cent at 1:58pm (local time) on Tuesday, while VRE shares tumbled 2.36 per cent. — VNS