The well-known global credit rating firm Moody’s has assessed equitisation plan of the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) to be credit positive.

 In its weekly Global Credit Research, Moody’s commented that equitisation will help BIDV improve its capital base and adequacy, bring positive structure changes as well as enhance its financial and management transparency.

Besides, the participation of foreign strategic investors will help the bank have independent supervision, to improve its corporate governance practices and to obtain support in terms of risk management and product development.

Under the plan previously approved by the Prime Minister, BIDV will sell a 15-percent stake to foreign strategic investors in 2012, another 3 percent stake through the initial public offering (IPO) in the domestic stock market on Dec. 28 and then, sell 1 percent of preferential shares to the bank’s staff and 3 percent to its labor unions.

The Vietnamese Government will reduce its holding in BIDV from 100 percent to 78 percent after finalising the transaction and will continue to decrease to 65 percent of stakes by 2015./.