Major shareholders exit as Vietnam’s securities boom fuels record revenue growth at Vietcap.
As Vietnam’s stock market positions itself as Southeast Asia’s next major capital market story, insider transactions at Vietcap Securities are drawing fresh scrutiny from investors watching the country’s fast-evolving financial sector. A series of high-profile share sales linked to company insiders and affiliated investment funds comes at a time when Vietnam’s brokerage industry is benefiting from surging trading activity, margin lending demand, and renewed foreign investor interest ahead of the country’s anticipated market upgrade.
Vietnam Discovery Investment Fund, known locally as Quỹ Đầu tư Bản Việt Discovery, disclosed that it had sold all 135,000 shares of Vietcap between May 6 and May 8 through exchange-matched transactions, fully exiting its position in the brokerage firm. The fund is chaired by Nguyen Thanh Phuong, who also serves as Chairwoman of Vietcap. Despite the fund’s exit, Phuong personally remains a shareholder with roughly 30.8 million VCI shares, equivalent to 2.68% ownership.
The divestment follows another insider-related transaction earlier this year. Between March 10 and March 25, Viet Capital Fund Management — the management company overseeing the Discovery Fund — sold 218,300 VCI shares, reducing its stake from 0.08% to 0.05%.
Investor attention intensified further after To Hai’s spouse, Truong Nguyen Thien Kim, sold her entire 16.91 million-share stake in Vietcap through negotiated transactions between April 15 and May 4. The block represented approximately 1.47% of the company’s charter capital. Following the transaction, Kim no longer holds any VCI shares, while To Hai continues to own more than 174 million shares, equivalent to 15.19% of the company.
The insider selling activity comes against the backdrop of sharply improving business performance. In the first quarter of 2026, Vietcap reported operating revenue exceeding VND1.4 trillion ($55 million), up 65% year-on-year. The company benefited from strong gains in trading assets, brokerage activity, and margin lending as Vietnam’s equity market experienced a resurgence in liquidity and retail participation.
Revenue from financial assets measured at fair value through profit or loss (FVTPL) contributed more than VND500 billion, while brokerage income more than doubled to nearly VND340 billion. Lending and receivables income rose 61% to almost VND415 billion, underscoring how securities firms in Vietnam are increasingly functioning as shadow banking and wealth management platforms alongside traditional brokerage operations.
Still, profitability growth lagged revenue expansion due to rising costs. Operating expenses doubled to VND632 billion amid heavier brokerage and trading-related losses, while financial expenses jumped nearly 90%. Net profit after tax reached approximately VND341 billion, up 16% from a year earlier.
By the end of March 2026, Vietcap’s total assets had climbed to nearly VND37.1 trillion ($1.45 billion). Its balance sheet remains heavily exposed to margin lending and equity investments, with over VND16.6 trillion allocated to loans and more than VND13 trillion invested in available-for-sale assets. The firm also increased exposure to several major Vietnamese stocks, including FPT Corporation, Mobile World Investment Corporation, and Masan Consumer.
The timing of these insider exits is likely to fuel debate among investors: are major shareholders simply taking profits after a strong rally, or signaling caution as Vietnam’s market enters a more volatile phase? With Vietnam pushing toward emerging market status and global funds increasingly hunting for exposure to Southeast Asia’s growth story, moves inside firms like Vietcap may offer an early read on where smart money believes the market is heading next.
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Source: Vietnam Insider