BDA advises VinaCapital and DWS Vietnam Fund on sale of stake in An Giang Plant Protection to Standard Chartered

• Investment into one of Vietnam’s leading agribusiness group
• Largest sponsor exit via trade sale in Vietnam in 2014
• Largest private equity investment  into Vietnam in 2014

Standard Chartered Private Equity (“SCPE”) has acquired a 36% stake in An Giang Plant Protection JSC (“AGPPS”), the largest distributor of plant protection chemicals and rice seeds in Vietnam, as well as an emerging aggregator and processor of rice. SCPE acquired the stake in AGPPS from VOF Investment Ltd (“VinaCapital”) and DWS Vietnam Fund Ltd (“DWS”) for a cash consideration of approximately US$90m. BDA acted as financial adviser to VinaCapital and DWS on the transaction.

SCPE will provide strategic input into the agribusiness company’s business planning and support the management in its development plans.

Bert Kwan, Head of Southeast Asia (excluding Indonesia) at SCPE, commented: “We are extremely pleased to be an investor in one of Vietnam’s flagship enterprises. We are privileged to support AGPPS’s laudable mission of bringing to the market commercially sound products and services that bolster the profitability of the Vietnamese rice value chain, while raising the standard of living for potentially millions of farmers.”

About Standard Chartered Private Equity
Standard Chartered Private Equity was established in 2002 as the principal investment platform of Standard Chartered Bank and has since invested more than US$5bn in over 100 companies across Asia, Africa and the Middle East www.sc.com

About An Giang Plant Protection JSC
An Giang Plant Protection JSC is the largest distributor of plant protection chemicals and rice seeds in Vietnam, as well as an emerging aggregator and processor of rice. The company was founded in 1993 and is based in Vietnam. www.agpps.com

About VinaCapital and VOF Investment Ltd
VinaCapital is a leading investment management and real estate development firm in Vietnam, with a diversified portfolio of US$1.5bn in assets under management. VinaCapital manages VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Limited, which is a closed-end fund trading on the AIM Market of the London Stock Exchange. VOF Investment Ltd is a fully-owned subsidiary of the VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Ltd. www.vinacapital.com

About DWS Vietnam Fund Ltd
DWS Vietnam Fund Ltd is a closed-end investment company. The primary investment objective of the Company is to seek long-term capital appreciation of its assets by investing in a diversified portfolio of Vietnamese-related securities (onshore and offshore), such as equity, fixed-income and money market instruments. www.vietnamfund.deutscheawm.com

About BDA
BDA is a leader in cross-border investment banking. It advises on M&A, capital raising, and restructuring. BDA has been consistently owned and managed by the same team since 1996. It has a track record of providing independent advice to blue-chip corporate and financial sponsor clients from North America, Europe and Asia. BDA was named Investment Banking Firm of the Year at the ACG Champion’s Awards in 2014. It is headquartered in New York with offices in London, Bahrain, Mumbai, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, Seoul and Tokyo. BDA formed a partnership with William Blair & Company in 2011. BDA carries out its US securities business through BDA Advisors Inc., a broker-dealer registered with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and a member of FINRA and SIPC. BDA’s UK subsidiary is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). www.bdapartners.com

For more information regarding this transaction, please contact Paul DiGiacomo on +852 2537-9565 / + 84 (8) 6288-8755 or pdigiacomo@bdallc.com