Hanoi (VNA)𒉰 – The State Capital Investment Corporation (SCIC) has performed well in taking over State-owned enterprises and making efficient divestment in some enterprises, while making just a few new investments.

This was said by Minister of Finance Dinh Tien Dung in the National Assembly's question-and-answer session late on November 17. "Investment activity made by SCIC has not been plentiful, but its functions of taking over State capital management and divestment have been exercised well," Dung said. Vietnam's sovereign investment fund, formed in 2005 to invest in State-owned enterprises (SOEs), has taken over State ownership rights in 980 enterprises with a total book value of nearly 8.52 trillion VND (380.4 million USD). In the past 10 years, it has sold State holdings in 811 enterprises, of which it has unloaded the entire stakes in 733 companies, reduced holdings in 78 firms and sold share purchase rights in nine enterprises. It has collected over 9.24 trillion VND (412.5 million USD) during these sales, a rise of 240 percent over the original cost, and earned a capital surplus of 5.36 trillion VND (239.3 million USD). Under the Government's regulation, such capital surplus will be recorded in its business results. After paying tax and allocating a proportion to the designed investment development funds, the remaining profits will deposited into the State budget. The corporation has also collected over 76.56 trillion VND (3.4 billion USD) for the Business Arrangement and Development Support Fund in which it represents the Government's management from 2011 to 2015, including 13.76 trillion VND (614.28 million USD) from SOE equitisation, 37.7 trillion VND (1.7 billion USD) from profits and dividends in invested enterprises, and 12.93 trillion VND (577.2 million USD) from interest income from cash deposits and government bonds. Regarding the SCIC's investment activities, the minister said SCIC has invested around 5 trillion VND (223.2 million USD) in government bonds. It has planned to invest 157 billion VND (7 million USD) in a cancer drug factory which has a total investment capital of 525 billion VND (23.4 million USD). The project is under investment research and SCIC has contributed 77 billion VND (3.4 million USD). It has also pumped nearly 1.67 trillion VND (74.6 million USD) into the Song Da water plant No 2 project. In October, the Government directed the SCIC to select an appropriate time to sell the entire State capital in 10 big SOEs, including Vietnam's biggest dairy producer Vinamilk, software giant FPT Corp and Bao Minh Insurance Corp. This is in line with the Government's policy to reduce involvement in economic sectors, where private businesses can operate and earmark resources for fields that require State control like national security, social welfare, and infrastructure and poverty reduction.-VNA