Vingroup eyes $60 bln valuation for car unit in potential US IPO

HANOi: Vingroup JSC, Vietnam's largest conglomerate, is considering an US initial public offering (IPO) of its car unit that could value VinFast at about $60 billion, two people familiar with the matter said on Monday.

Vingroup, which was founded in 1993 in Ukraine, is working with Credit Suisse Hong Kong for the potential offering on the New York Stock Exchange, the sources said.

Bloomberg News had reported earlier on Monday that the company could raise as much as $3 billion in its IPO, making it the biggest-ever listing by a Vietnamese company.

The offering will take place in the second quarter, one of the sources said.

A Vingroup spokesman declined to comment.

VinFast became Vietnam's first fully fledged domestic car manufacturer when its first gasoline-powered models built under its own badge hit the streets in 2019.

Last month, Reuters exclusively reported that VinFast was in early stage talks with Taiwan's Foxconn about partnering in electric vehicles.

The company sold about 30,000 vehicles last year and has forecast sales of more than 45,000 for 2021. It will begin delivery of EVs produced at its factory in the northern port city of Hai Phong to domestic customers by December.

VinFast, which also produces electric motorbikes and buses, obtained a permit to test autonomous vehicles on public streets in California earlier this year.

Vingroup has grown to become one of Vietnam's largest listed firms. The company, once a real estate and retail conglomerate, now also sells vehicles, television sets and smartphones.