Vietcombank Acquires Full Ownership of Vietcombank Tower in Ho Chi Minh City

Vietcombank, a leading commercial bank in Vietnam, has acquired full ownership of Vietcombank Tower, a prime office building located in the bustling Ben Bach Dang area of Ho Chi Minh City's central district. The bank has progressively increased its stake in Vietcombank - Bonday - Ben Thanh (VBB), the company managing the skyscraper. Initially a joint venture between Vietcombank, Hong Kong's Bonday Investments, and Ho Chi Minh City Service - Trade Corporation (Setra Corp), VBB operated under this structure until late 2025. Under the joint venture agreement, Vietcombank held 52% of the shares, Bonday Investments 30%, and Setra Corp 18%. Crucially, the charter stipulated that major financial and operational decisions required unanimous consent from all parties, meaning Vietcombank did not have outright control over the investment as of last year. In the first half of this year, Vietcombank completed the acquisition of the remaining 48% of VBB's shares. According to its consolidated financial report for the first quarter, the bank's ownership in the joint venture rose from 52% at the beginning of the year to 70% by the end of March. This move added approximately VND1.2 trillion (around $49 million USD) to the book value of the investment. Significantly, a portion of the 18% of shares acquired by the bank was previously seized during the legal proceedings of the massive Van Thinh Phat corruption case. Truong My Lan, the central figure in the case, testified that she contributed these shares to VBB in 2011 to generate profits for her family, with Setra Corp holding the nominal ownership. In the second quarter, Vietcombank further acquired the remaining 30% stake from Bonday Investments, thus achieving 100% ownership of VBB. While the transaction value has not been disclosed, an estimation based on the recent 18% share purchase suggests the bank may have spent an additional VND2 trillion (around $81 million USD) for this final acquisition. Vietcombank Tower, situated at 5 Me Linh Square in the prime Ben Bach Dang area, is an A+ class office building with four-sided frontage offering views towards Thu Thiem. This complete ownership consolidation is viewed as a strategic asset acquisition for Vietcombank. Source: VnExpress