Samsung SDS acquires 25% stake in Vietnam's IT service firm
Samsung SDS CEO Hong Won-pyo, right, shakes hands with CMC Chairman and CEO Nguyen Trung Chinh after signing a contract on strategic investment at JW Marriott Hotel in Hanoi, Friday. / Courtesy of Samsung SDS
By Jun Ji-hye
Samsung SDS will become the largest shareholder of Vietnamese IT services company CMC Corporation, it said Sunday, noting that the investment is expected to contribute to expanding its business in the Southeast Asian market.
The IT services arm of Samsung Group signed a formal contract with CMC on the strategic investment in Hanoi, Friday. Under the contract, the Korean company plans to acquire at least a 25 percent stake of one of the leading IT service firms in Vietnam.
Once the State Securities Commission of Vietnam approves the transaction, the Korean company will become the largest shareholder of CMC.
The contract states that Samsung SDS will participate in the board of directors of the Vietnamese company as the largest shareholder, through which the two companies will share growth strategies and create a blueprint for the future together.
Samsung SDS said the strategic investment will allow it to integrate its state-of-the-art IT technologies with CMC's infrastructure and local business networks, noting that Vietnam will become a key place for the firm to expand its business in the Southeast Asian market.
The Korean company plans to utilize the Hanoi-based company as a base to develop software in Southeast Asia.
The two companies will also initially focus on intelligent factories, cloud technology, security, smart building and content management systems, and will expand their cooperation in artificial intelligence, blockchain and big data sectors afterward.
The intelligent factory business will target local companies as well as Korean companies doing businesses in Vietnam.
“By joining forces with CMC, we will expand our digital transformation business targeting global clients,” Samsung SDS CEO Hong Won-pyo said.
Nguyen Trung Chinh, chairman and CEO of CMC, also said the two companies' plan to grow together will create tangible achievements.