On the morning of June 24, billionaire Nguyen Dang Quang's Masan Group responded to recent news from a Korean news source regarding the investment of South Korea's SK Group in Masan.

According to an article from the Maeil Business Newspaper of Korea, regarding the information that SK Group (SK) “exercised a put option (right to sell shares) to sell 9% of its shares in Masan Group”, Masan Group said that this information is incorrect. So far, SK has not exercised the put option.

Mr. Nguyen Dang Quang's Masan affirmed that both businesses are currently in the final stages of a specific roadmap, under favorable market conditions, for SK Group to reduce its ownership stake in Masan Group.

According to the announcement, SK has identified professional investors with international scale and understanding of Masan's business operations to transfer ownership shares in Masan. This roadmap is designed to protect and help maximize value for shareholders of both businesses.

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Billionaire Nguyen Dang Quang's Masan Group denies information that the giant SK Group has exercised its option to sell shares in this enterprise. Photo: MSN

SK is a chaebol in South Korea. This group became a shareholder of Masan Group in 2018. At that time, the Korean giant spent 530 billion won (about 11,000 billion VND) to buy 9.5% of Masan Group's capital.

In mid-November 2021, SK Group, through its subsidiary SK South East Asia Investment, also invested in buying shares of WinCommerce - the retail arm of Masan Group. Specifically, SK South East Asia Investment acquired 16.3% of the company's shares for 460 billion won (410 million USD). After that, SK Group continued to invest 340 million USD to own 4.9% of The CrownX shares. Masan holds 85% of The CrownX.

The CrownX was established in 2019, on the basis of merging Masan's food and beverage segments with WinCommerce retail segment.

Previously, Maeil Business Newspaper reported that SK Group is planning to sell its shares in "giants" in Vietnam to recover its initial investment of 1,000 billion won (about 720 million USD at the current exchange rate). SK Group is in the process of restructuring its business operations, so it will re-evaluate its investments to ensure cash flow.

In May, Mr. Danny Le - General Director of Masan Group told investors that SK Group will not sell off its MSN shares in bulk. Masan Group and SK are expected to divest within a 24-month period.

Mr. Nguyen Dang Quang returns to the list of USD billionaires: Waiting for a breakthrough in the decade Chairman of Masan Group Nguyen Dang Quang is on the list of 6 USD billionaires of Vietnamese people. He can make a breakthrough in the next decade thanks to the number 1 consumer-retail empire in Vietnam as well as the machine that supplies raw materials for high-performance battery production in the future.