Vietnam’s white-hot market continues to defy gravity, having risen by about 30% year to date. Demand for Vietnam exposure by foreign fund managers shows no signs of abating. In January, local fund manager VinaCapital announced that it was raising another $200 million for its existing $205 million AIM-listed property investment fund, VinaLand. The London-listed fund is seeking to invest in city commercial, residential and hospitality developments as well as a land bank.
It is a sign of the heated market that VinaLand is able to make such a large call from a closed-end investment fund. Investors normally do not like further issues since they dilute a fund’s net asset value. In the likely event of an oversubscription, existing shareholders will only be guaranteed a one-for-two allocation. That suggests existing shareholders might face significant dilution. However, they will probably be pleased just to get some stock.