Sacombank caps its FOL at 30 per cent and targets boosting its profits

Sacombank's 2023 AGM

The Ho Chi Minh City-headquartered lender Sacombank has just unveiled its ambitious plans for 2023 at its annual general shareholders' meeting on April 25, aiming to achieve a pre-tax profit of $413 million, which represents a remarkable 50 per cent increase compared to last year. The bank also has its sights set on reaching a total asset value of $28.6 billion, reflecting an 11 per cent growth compared to 2022.

One key aspect that Sacombank’s Board of Directors addressed is the foreign ownership ratio of STB shares.

As of May 2021, the Vietnam Securities Depository has readjusted Sacombank’s FOL back to the original figure of 30 per cent. Sacombank now recognises that its FOL for STB shares currently stands at the approved level of 30 per cent of the bank's charter capital.

Another significant issue raised by Sacombank shareholders at this year's meeting was the matter of dividend distribution. Shareholders questioned that the bank has successfully achieved its annual profit target and should promptly distribute dividends to shareholders.

In response to this, chairman of the Board of Directors Duong Cong Minh explained that due to the ongoing restructuring process that Sacombank is undergoing, the request to distribute dividends to shareholders has not been approved by the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV).

Sacombank's leadership also revealed that the bank has addressed bad debts in a fundamental manner, with the only remaining issue being related to a previous scandal and the ongoing debt restructuring process.

The bank has proposed a plan to repurchase these shares from the SBV for auctioning, with the aim of resolving the issue once and for all. Once the resolution and restructuring process is completed, Sacombank will proceed with dividend distributions to shareholders.

Minh further assured shareholders that Sacombank will complete the restructuring process within this year, and dividend distributions will follow accordingly.

He also added, “2023 would be the final year of the restructuring process. Sacombank has already submitted a dividend distribution plan to increase its charter capital and is now awaiting approval from the SBV. This demonstrates our commitment to fulfilling our promises to shareholders and creating value for our investors.”

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