Listing abroad not easy for local firms, insiders say
Last updated: Saturday, October 10, 2009 |
VnnNews - Listing procedures have proved difficult for Vietnamese firms aiming to sell shares on foreign stock markets.
The Hanoi-based infrastructure developer Cavico Corp. completed a “hard journey” in meeting all the requirements to become the first Vietnamese firm listed on the US national securities exchange NASDAQ last month, Chief Executive Officer Bui Quang Ha said.
“The listing procedure was a rigorous process, specifically the due diligence conducted by NASDAQ,” Ha said in a statement following the listing on September 18.
He said the company had consulted with the New York-based full-service investment bank Rodman & Renshaw LLC during the application while leading US law firm Sichenzia Ross Friedman Ference LLP represented Cavico during the process.
Cavico shares had been traded on the US OTC Bulletin Board under the ticker symbol CVIC before it was listed on NASDAQ, the largest US equities exchange.
“Following a comprehensive evaluation of all US exchanges, we determined that the NASDAQ Capital Market was the best fit for Cavico Corp.,” Ha said in the statement.
Trading of Cavico’s common stock commenced September 18 under the ticker symbol CAVO.
Founded in 2000, Hanoi-based Cavico Corp. focuses on large infrastructure projects, including hydropower facilities, bridges, tunnels, roads, and mines.
The PetroVietnam Finance Corp. (PVFC), a unit of Vietnam Oil & Gas Group, is now finalizing the documents needed to list on the Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX).
The company hopes to list during the second quarter of next year as Vietnam’s first credit organization listed abroad, Tong Quoc Truong, general director of PVFC, told Thanh Nien.
PetroVietnam, as the parent company is known, owns 78 percent of PetroVietnam Finance, which is the second-largest listed company on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange.
Truong said the listing aimed to make the company brand known internationally, to mobilize funds from foreign investors and to expand its business across Asia, starting with Singapore.
Though advised by Morgan Stanley, a market leader in securities, Truong said it had been hard for the firm to fulfill all the listing procedures.
“There’re so many procedures that we’re still not sure how much farther we have to go from now until the listing.”
According to a stock expert who asked to remain anonymous, listing procedures are not the biggest problem as there are different options in every country.
Foreign exchange management regulations allow foreign investors to open an account in Vietnam and buy shares here, but not vice versa.
He said the system should be more equal for domestic and foreign investors.
The State Securities Commission in August began collecting its members’ opinions for a draft decree that would instruct domestic firms on how to list abroad.
Since 2007 many locally-listed firms have set overseas listing as a major goal, including Vietnam largest dairy firm Vinamilk (VNM) and PetroVietnam Drilling and Well Services Joint Stock Co. (PVD).
VietNamNet/TN
http://www.vnnnews.net/listing-abroad-not-easy-for-local-firms-insiders-say
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