Foreign PE Funds Gear Up New Capital Raising Plans in Vietnam
Foreign private equity (PE) fund management firms in Vietnam are building up plans on new fund raising to tap post-crisis opportunities as their existing investments will become due soon.
Aureos Capital plans to mobilize US$250 million for a new fund investing in Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia.
The Denmark-based BankInvest will set up a US$150 million fund for the Vietnamese market while it now has only US$20 million available for investment in the coming time.
Mekong Capital Ltd. is also raising US$150 million for its fourth closed-end fund, Mekong Enterprise Fund III (MEFIII) to invest in small and medium-sized enterprises in Vietnam.
Almost PE funds said they have disbursed nearly all their money and lack capital for continued investment in coming years when the crisis comes over.
Along with this strategy, these funds have been liquidating good investments in local firms with high internal rate of return (IRR) via initial public offering, listing or selling to other strategic partners.
Specific details on liquidations are often included in the investment contract, and invested firms are expected to facilitate this process, funds said.
Recently, Mekong Capital sold all US$1.85 million investment in Saigon Gas JSC to Elf Gas (Total). It is selling stake in Ngo Han JSC, AA Architect Construction JSC, Nam Hoa JSC.
BankInvest also seeks to liquidate listed portfolio in Masan Group and Hoa Phat Group to prepare for the third fund setup. (Saigon Economic Times)
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