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16/08/2023

Following Its Nasdaq Debut, Vietnamese EV Manufacturer VinFast Is Now Valued More Than Ford And GM




Following Its Nasdaq Debut, Vietnamese EV Manufacturer VinFast Is Now Valued More Than Ford And GM
After making its U.S. trading debut, VinFast's shares increased in value by almost 270%, surpassing some of the top automakers in the world, including Ford, GM, BMW, and Volkswagen.
 
Following the completion of its merger with the American-listed special purpose acquisition business Black Spade Acquisition, the Vietnamese maker of electric vehicles listed on Nasdaq on Tuesday. A SPAC is a shell corporation that generates money through an IPO with the intention of buying an already-existing operating business.
 
VinFast shares ended trading at $37.06 on Tuesday, a 270% increase above the $10 IPO price of Black Spade Acquisition. Before the market opened on Wednesday, shares were down 10%.
 
VinFast is now valued at $85 billion as a result of the market debut, according to CNBC estimates.
 
According to a June filing with a US securities regulator, VinFast was previously valued by the SPAC merger at over $23 billion.
 
Refinitiv data estimates the combined market value of BMW, Volkswagen, Ford, and GM to be roughly $69 billion, $48 billion, and $46 billion, respectively.
 
With a $739 billion market cap, Tesla remains the largest automaker in the world, and its Chinese rival BYD is in fourth place with a $93 billion valuation.
 
VinFast, a division of the Vietnamese conglomerate Vingroup that produces automobiles, was established in 2017.
 
Due to their speculative nature, analysts have previously claimed that SPAC shares are particularly volatile. Numerous sponsors have been compelled to abandon their prospective partnerships as a result of macroeconomic challenges, sometimes even before the SPACs have been listed.
 
“We were ready to do a traditional IPO. We pursued the path for almost two years but the markets have been challenging so we decided to decouple the listing from the fundraising. We got the financial backing from our parent company and we went ahead with the listing by way of SPAC,” said VinFast CEO Lê Thị Thu Thủy, in a CNBC interview on Tuesday.
 
Vingroup claims that Pham Nhat Vuong, chairman of Vingroup, gave VinFast a $2.5 billion boost in April to support its international expansion.
 
Lê responded that it was "just a way" to get listed when questioned about the company's choice to list via a SPAC in unfavourable market conditions.
 
“You saw how the market reacted when we opened today, right? I think it’s just a way for us to get listed in the U.S. We didn’t think of the reputation of SPACs,” said Lê.
 
Obstacles in VinFast's U.S. expansion include delayed delivery to its first clients because of a technical problem.
 
Eventually, a few months beyond its December objective, the business—which has yet to turn a profit—delivered those automobiles to its first American customers in March.
 
To compete with EV manufacturers Tesla and BYD in the American market, as well as traditional automakers that are increasingly focusing on hybrids and EVs, VinFast is constructing a facility in North Carolina. According to the carmaker, the factory can initially produce up to 150,000 vehicles annually.
 
Rather of opening as planned in 2024, the factory is now anticipated to do so in 2025.
 
Lê responded that there is adequate market share for each participant when asked how VinFast intends to compete with the major competitors in a cutthroat market like the U.S.
 
″[With] the whole world and U.S. in particular moving from internal combustion engines to EVs, there’s room for everybody.”
 
(Source:www.cnbc.com)

Christopher J. Mitchell

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