Telco opportunities now abound

November 03, 2011 | 17:07

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The government’s recent move retrenching telecom network infrastructure firms with state ruling shares offers vast opportunities to investors.

Under Decision 55/2011/QD-TTg dated mid October 2011 the state will have controlling stake in five firms. These are state group Vietnam National Post and Telecoms Group (VNPT), military-run Viettel Group, GTel Mobile Joint Stock Company (GTel), Vietnam Maritime Communication and Electronics LLC (Vishipel) and Indochina Telecom Joint Stock Company (Indochina Telecom).

This means the state will not hold a controlling share in six remaining telcos with network infrastructure.

Decision 55 reportedly entails multiple opportunities to investors particularly those wanted to grab more stake in telecom field as well as enable capital starved firms to find more suitable business models.

FPT director Truong Dinh Anh told VIR he had waited for the decision for 18 months.

“Fresh telcos like FPT Telecom will have more chance for capital mobilisation to spur development when state policies become more open,” said Anh.

FPT is in the process of negotiating with the Ministry of Finance and the State Capital Investment Corporation to be able to merge FPT Telecom into FPT.

FPT currently holds over 40 per cent stake at FPT Telecom and it wants the latter to be its own business via stock swap or partial cash payment.

Like FPT, privately-owned CMC Group is reportedly weighing over hiking its stake in CMC Telecom Infrastructure Joint Stock Company (CMC TI). The former is holding CMC TI’s 49 per cent chartered capital.

CMC TI contributes a remarkable share in CMC’s total revenue and is a field with high and constant growth in recent years, whereas CMC’s other business fields such as distribution shows signs of going downward.

Decision 55, effective from December 1, 2011, also opens opportunities for the telcos with their backs to the wall to find new business models to boost efficiency.

For instance, Saigon Postel Corporation (SPT) may further sell stake to source capital to revive its ailing S-Fone network. In the second quarter of 2011, SPT sold 30 per cent stake to private equity Saigon Invest. However, until present both parties are showing no efforts to invigorate unwell S-Fone.