Thai bank acquires Vietnamese finance company
Thailand's fourth-largest bank has agreed to acquire all the equity of Home Credit Vietnam for US$865 million.
Home Credit Group on February 28 announced the transfer of its entire shareholding in Home Credit Vietnam Financial Company to the Siam Commercial Bank Public Company (SCB), a member of SCBX Public Company (SCBX). The transfer agreement is valued at around EUR800 million (US$865 million).
| The deal is expected to be worth US$865 million. |
The transfer process is expected to be completed in the first half of 2025, following approval by the relevant authorities in Vietnam and Thailand.
Home Credit Vietnam, a subsidiary of the international investment group PPF, started operations in 2009. The company holds a 14% market share of the consumer credit market, ranking second in Vietnam (after FE Credit).
Home Credit's core services include installment loans for consumer goods (motorcycles, appliances, electronics, furniture), cash loans, and credit cards.
The acquirer, SCB, is the oldest bank in Thailand and the fourth largest in total assets. SCB's parent company, SCBX, is a financial technology conglomerate with 12 subsidiaries operating in three sectors: banking, consumer finance, digital technology, and connectivity platforms.
The sale of Vietnam's second-largest finance company came when the consumer finance market was facing several headwinds. Low-income customers have been hit hard by economic difficulties, leading to a surge in non-performing loans for finance companies. New lending has also slowed down due to increased risks and reduced demand.
In the first half of the previous year, the profits of financial companies saw significant declines, with some reporting substantial losses ranging from hundreds of billions to trillions of Vietnamese dong (VND). In this challenging environment, Home Credit reported a profit of over VND210 billion ($8.5 million) in the first half of 2023, ranking second after MCredit.
