On December 6, VinFast announced that it had filed for an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in the United States, as reported by Reuters. It occurred right before the scheduled shipment of its first electric SUVs in California later this month. The Nasdaq Global Select Market will list company shares under the symbol “VFS.”
According to the Vietnamese EV maker, it would change its legal status to a Singapore public limited company and change its name to VinFast Auto Ltd. for the IPO. However, the proposed offering’s price range and share quantity are still to be finalized.
“We understand that our company valuation or the size of our IPO will be subject, in part, to market conditions. Once VinFast successfully lists in the US, this will facilitate future access to the capital markets for the company, and further support VinFast’s global expansion.”
VinFast CEO Le Thi Thu Thuy
Notably, the IPO was originally planned for Q4 2022. However, its parent company Vingroup conglomerate previously contemplated postponing the initial plan to 2023 because of “market uncertainty.”
“VinFast intends to conduct an IPO after the SEC declares the registration statement effective, market conditions permitting.”
VinFast CEO Le Thi Thu Thuy
VinFast’s efforts to be a global brand
Undoubtedly, the electric vehicle startup has been vying for the US market. In fact, it has presented four SUVs at the LA Auto Show.
VinFast also got $1.2 billion in subsidies during the summer to construct a facility in North Carolina. It aims to start producing cars at the said EV manufacturing facility by July 2024.
Furthermore, VinFast has guaranteed potential American customers a $7,500 discount if they wait to purchase an EV that qualifies for US EV tax incentives.
It is also worth noting that VinFast’s Singapore-based holding company submitted a private IPO filing to US securities regulators in April.
After a five-year effort to establish a Vietnamese auto production hub for North American and European markets, the company delivered its first batch of 999 vehicles to the United States in late November.
VinFast is not yet profitable, despite Vingroup’s strong reputation in its home country. The automaker lost around $1.3 billion in 2021 and a further $1.4 billion over the first three quarters of this year.
