MSB and PGBank officially went public on HSX and UPCoM

MSB went public on HSX on December 23

MSB, formerly known as Vietnam Maritime Commercial Joint Stock Bank, officially made its debut on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HSX) on December 23.

The bank held an impressive initial public offering (IPO), with shares gaining around 18 per cent in the morning session, amid huge cash flows stirring up the stock market.

The bank offered an initial share price of VND15,000 (65 US cent). Market watchdogs believe this is a relatively attractive valuation, with its Price-to-Earnings (P/E) and Price-to-Books ratio (P/B) lower than those of other peers.

Specifically, its pre-tax profit reached VND2.302 trillion ($100 million) after November 2020, 60 per cent of its full-year target and up 116 per cent on-year.

The total outstanding of loans and corporate bonds were VND77.127 trillion ($3.35 billion), up 13.5 per cent while customer deposit decreased by 1 per cent year-to-date. The Current Account Savings Accounts ratio (CASA) was 22.8 per cent year-to-date, up 3.4 per cent, which keeps the bank’s target above 23 per cent at the end of the year.

However, the high CASA ratio was reflected by the low total deposit from customer, just accounting for 48 per cent of the total assets, which is lower than other banks. Also, MSB is active in the interbank market with a net lending of VND38.5 trillion ($1.67 billion), according to KIS Securities. Meanwhile, the bank’s pure Loan-to-Deposit ratio (LDR) increased from 75 per cent in 2019 to 92 per cent in the first nine months of this year.

The net value of VAMC bonds was VND1.2 trillion ($52.17 million) in 2019. As of September, MSB cleared all VAMC bonds by retrieving and provision, thereby creating more room to growth in 2021.

NPL ratio and delinquency rate were 2.32 and 3.8 per cent by the third quarter of 2020, up 27 and 2 basis points year-to-date. On the other hand, outstanding COVID-19 restructured loans were VND5.3 trillion ($230.43 million) in the first 10 months, accounting for 6.6 per cent of the total loan portfolio.

Furthermore, MSB expects to divest VND500 billion ($21.74 million) of charter capital of FCCOM – its consumer finance company. Whether divesting 100 or 50 per cent, MSB may record a profit of VND1.3 trillion ($56.5 million) or VND600 billion ($26 million) respectively, KIS reported.

Meanwhile, Vietnam Debt and Asset Trading Corporation (DATC) has offered to sell a complete lot of more than 4 million MSB shares on December 23, opening up an opportunity for eligible domestic and foreign investors to acquire more stakes.Both domestic and foreign investors are eligible to participate if they meet DATC's requirements for current ownership ratios to comply with current bank regulations. Purchasing time is from December 23 to December 29.

PGBank went public on the UPCoM on December 24

On the other hand, Petrolimex Commercial Joint Stock Bank (PGBank) has been publicly traded on December 24. The bank’s foreign ratio is currently capped at 30 per cent in accordance with the State Bank of Vietnam's regulations. Its reference price is around VND15,500 apiece, with more than 300 milion shares being traded on UPCoM.

Nguyen Quang Dinh, chairman of PGBank's board, highlighted that the bank aims to achieve stellar performance in 2021, with VND310 billion ($13.5 million) of pre-tax profit, up 45 per cent on-year. PGBank also vows to accelerate its non-performing loans clearance to bring the NPL ratio under 3 per cent in the coming years.