State-controlled national carrier Vietnam Airlines is expected to move its shares from the Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM) to the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HoSE), which is home to the country's largest firms, by April 2019, Deal Street Asia reported.
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The state currently owns 86.2% of Vietnam Airlines. The airline conducted an initial public offering (IPO) in 2014, when it sold a 3.48% equity stake.
Shares of Vietnam Airlines are traded on UPCoM at around VND34,000 (US$1.47) apiece, valuing the company at more than US$2 billion.
In 2016, Japan’s ANA Holdings paid US$108 million for an 8.8% stake in Vietnam Airlines.
Vietnam currently has five airlines, including national carrier Vietnam Airlines, budget operator Jetstar Pacific Airlines (partly owned by Vietnam Airlines), budget carrier Vietjet Aviation, Vietnam Air Services (VASCO) and the startup carrier Bamboo Airways, which will launch its long-awaited maiden flight on December 29.
AirAsia, the largest low-cost carrier in Southeast Asia, and Thien Minh group, its partner in Vietnam, is scheduled to set up a domestic airline in Vietnam and begin operations in August 2019.
