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Wife Takes Helm of Billion-Dollar EV Taxi Firm
6 Mar
Summary
- Pham Nhat Vuong appointed his wife chairwoman of EV taxi firm GSM.
- GSM is planning an international IPO potentially valued at $20 billion.
- Vietnam's trade deficit narrowed to $1.05 billion in February.
Pham Nhat Vuong, the richest man in Vietnam, has appointed his wife, Pham Thu Huong, as the new chairwoman of their electric vehicle taxi company, Green & Smart Mobility JSC (GSM), also known as Xanh SM. This transition in leadership comes as GSM is reportedly considering an international Initial Public Offering (IPO) that could value the company at around $20 billion.
GSM, which deploys electric vehicles manufactured by Vuong's VinFast, is a prominent ride-hailing service in Vietnam that is actively expanding its operations. The company has already established a presence in Laos, Indonesia, and the Philippines, with plans to enter India, a market where VinFast recently launched an EV manufacturing facility. Vuong holds a 95% ownership stake in GSM, and Huong succeeds Phan Thanh Long, who will continue as the company's CEO.
In separate economic news, Vietnam's trade deficit for February narrowed to $1.05 billion, a reduction from January's $1.78 billion deficit. However, both export and import growth in February were lower than anticipated, rising by 5.7% and 4.4% respectively. Consumer prices saw an increase of 3.35%, attributed partly to higher demand during the lunar new year festival. These economic indicators suggest potential challenges for Vietnam's export-driven economy, despite its robust growth in the previous year. The country's trade surplus with the US increased, while its deficit with China widened.
