Vietnam’s Bamboo Airways sees $2.7b market cap at listing

Vietnam’s Bamboo Airways expects a market capitalization of about $2.7b at its planned listing no later than the third quarter as it anticipates a June or July easing of the government’s pandemic halt of international flights. The carrier, which began operations in 2019, plans to list 105 million shares on either the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange or Hanoi Stock Exchange, Chairman Trinh Van Quyet said. Bamboo Airways expects to set the initial price for its trading debut at 60,000 dong ($2.6) per share, he added. This marks the second attempt by the carrier to list its shares after scrapping the plan last year because of the novel coronavirus outbreak. The benchmark VN Index of Vietnamese stocks has rallied 8.8% this year to a near three-year high as the nation so far has mostly contained the domestic spread and started vaccinations this month. “The market condition is very favorable” for the share listing, Quyet said. Quyet anticipates the government will “cautiously” begin lifting its ban on most commercial international flights during the summer. He plans to start Bamboo Airways flights to the US in Q4, he said. The carrier last year received permission from the US DoT to operate direct flights between the US and Vietnam, he said.<br/>