Real estate sees a rise of M&A deals

Large-scale real estate company takeovers this year have included those by Vingoup and Alpha King, Photo: Le Toan

Figures from JLL Vietnam show that in April, outstanding examples of mergers and acquisitions in real estate were seen, as Vingroup acquired Vietnam International University from Malaysia Berjaya, while Alpha King acquired both the Ngan Binh complex and Xuan Mai Investment and Construction JSC from Hoan Cau Corporation for their Eco-Green Saigon project.

Stephen Wyatt, country manager of JLL Vietnam, commented that Vietnam continues to attract significant interest from foreign investors in all sectors of the property market, and that the biggest challenge for the firm is finding quality opportunities.

“We have seen from five to 10 foreign investors a week, and whilst the economy continues at this pace, we expect to see another bumper year for foreign investment in Vietnam in 2018,” said Wyatt.

The country’s real estate sector attracted $455 million between January and April, accounting for 12.8 per cent of the country’s total foreign direct investment (FDI) capital during the period, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI).

Last week South Korea’s Daewon Thu Duc House became the latest in a wave of foreign-backed developers investing in the property market.

Daewon Thu Duc House established a joint venture with the Vietnam Manufacturing and Export Processing Company to develop a $115 million office complex and trading centre, along with high-rise apartment buildings, townhouses, a supermarket, and other facilities, in Hadong district of Hanoi. The joint venture has charter capital of $23 million, of which Daewon Thu Duc House contributes 49 per cent.

Meanwhile, Singapore-based Frasers Property Ltd. (formerly known as Frasers Centrepoint Ltd.) recently announced that it was in the process of acquiring 75 per cent of the issued share capital of Phu An Khang Real Estate JSC, equivalent to 24 million ordinary shares and $18 million.

According to a statement released by Frasers Property, Phu An Khang is now developing a mixed-use residential and commercial project on a plot in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 2.

Frasers Property made its first foray into Vietnam in 1999 with the development of the 22-storey retail and office building Me Linh Point Tower in District 1, the central business district of Ho Chi Minh City.

According to reports from MPI, investment in real estate was focused on the southern market, Commercial Real Estate Services reported.

However, since early last year, foreign investors have been focusing their attention on Hanoi’s property market, with examples like Sumitomo Group’s deal on the northern side of the Red River.

The General Statistics Office reported that Vietnam lured 883 new FDI projects registered at $8.06 billion in this year’s first four months, down 23.9 per cent on-year.

However, FDI disbursement was estimated at $5.1 billion during this period, up 6.3 per cent. South Korea was the top foreign investor in Vietnam between January and April, followed by Japan.