The upcoming Vietnam Merger and Acquisition (M&A) Forum 2014 will select outstanding State-owned enterprises (SOEs) which have been equitised successfully and performed well, heard a press conference on July 17.

Head of the organising board Nguyen Anh Tuan, Editor in Chief of the Dau tu (Vietnam Investment Review) newspaper, said the honouring aims to fuel the equitisation of SOEs in the coming time.

Dang Xuan Minh, General Director of the AVM Company – co-organiser of the event, said the first M&A wave arose from 2008 to 2013 amid an array of economic difficulties, forcing many businesses to restructure themselves to overcome such a situation.

The value of M&A deals in Vietnam jumped to 5 billion USD from 1 billion USD over the period, and a number of firms made good use of this opportunity to become strong enterprises, he added.

This year’s forum on August 7 in Ho Chi Minh City will evaluate M&A trends in hot sectors such as banking – finance, food and consumer goods, technology and e-commerce.

Issues regarding M&A strategies and technical problems will also be included in the agenda.

The sixth annual forum will comprise five main activities, namely conference, MAF Expo, Vietnam M&A Awards, M&A market report and Gala Dinner.

Some 400 domestic and foreign entrepreneurs are expected to take part in the event./.