VinFast Auto Ltd. soared in its first day of trading as the Vietnamese electric-vehicle maker looks to raise its profile and take on established car manufacturers.
The company’s shares gained an eye-popping 255% Tuesday in New York, giving it a market value in excess of $85 billion. That’s well above US auto giants such as Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co.
Read More: VinFast’s De-SPAC Valuation Vaults It Past Ford, GM
VinFast debuted on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol VFS after completing a merger with blank-check company Black Spade Acquisition Co. that valued it at $23 billion. The company is backed by Vietnam’s richest man, who added tens of billions of dollars to his net worth with VinFast’s first-day gains.
The listing caps VinFast’s years-long efforts to become a publicly traded company and puts it in the same arena as Tesla Inc., Lucid Group Inc. and Rivian Automotive Inc. A listed status may also pave the way for VinFast to raise more capital as it looks to expand in the US.
Read More: EV Maker VinFast to List on Nasdaq in Rare SPAC Venue Switch
VinFast Chief Executive Officer Le Thuy said the listing isn’t a publicity stunt to introduce the still-niche brand to American car buyers, but rather a necessary step in expanding beyond its home country.
“It’s just a milestone that we want to achieve on a path to becoming a global company,” she told Bloomberg Television in an interview.
The Southeast Asian carmaker — one of the few Vietnamese firms to list in the US — broke ground on its North Carolina factory last month. The plant is expected to have an initial capacity of 150,000 vehicles a year, and the company plans to begin production in 2025.
VinFast has gotten off to a shaky start in the US. In May, the company recalled all the electric sport utility vehicles it had shipped to the country over a software defect. It’s expecting more operating and net losses in the near term as it scales vehicle production.
While EV makers have a particularly patchy record when it comes to blank-check mergers, VinFast is optimistic about its equity appraisal for the SPAC listing. The company said in a written statement to Bloomberg News last week that it saw potential for upside in its valuation.
--With assistance from Caroline Hyde and Ed Ludlow.
(Updates with trading details beginning in second paragraph.)
