HONG KONG (AFP) — HSBC has agreed to buy a 10 percent stake of a leading Vietnamese insurance company, as the global banking giant continues its Asian expansion strategy.
HSBC said in a statement it will pay 255 million US dollars for the stake in Vietnam Insurance Corporation (BaoViet), the country's leading insurance and financial group.
The London and Hong Kong-listed bank will provide the Hanoi-based company technical assistance, training and will second some staff as part of the deal, in an effort to tap into the expanding insurance market in Vietnam.
"This investment and strategic partnership with BaoViet reflects a growing commitment to Vietnam, and is in line with HSBC?s stated strategy of targeting investment at high growth markets with international connections," said Stephen Green, chairman of HSBC Holdings.
"Vietnam is one of the fastest growing economies in Asia, with average GDP growth of more than 7 percent in the past 10 years. We are honoured to be able to play a leading role through this landmark transaction in the first equitisation of a major state-owned enterprise in Vietnam."
BaoVeit is the market leader in both life and general insurance and has total assets of 1.04 billion US dollars, the statement said.
In recent weeks, HSBC has agreed to buy half of South Korea's sixth-biggest bank, signed an insurance deal with two state-owned Indian banks and announced its entry into Japan's retail banking sector.
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