HSBC has purchased a 10 percent stake in Vietnamese insurance company, Bao Viet, for $302 million. HSBC also has the right to purchase a further 8 percent stake in Bao Viet after 18 months. The acquisition follows HSBC’s investment in Vietnamese lender Techcombank, in which it now holds a 15 percent stake.
“It is another example of the failed strategy that HSBC has pursued over 15 years of building a portfolio of stand-alone businesses which cannot be integrated into a coherent whole.” says activist and investor, Eric Knight, who argues that the size of the stake diminishes the influence HSBC will be able to exert over the insurance firm’s strategy.