Vietnam’s F88 pawnshop chain sees shares hit ceiling in market debut

Shares of Vietnam’s largest pawnshop chain operator, F88 Investment, surged nearly 40 percent to hit the ceiling price at the close of its trading debut on the Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM) on August 8, boosting its market capitalisation to 7.3 trillion dong (US$265 million).

With 400 shares traded during the day, its price rose from the opening reference of 634,900 dong (US$25.12) to 888,800 dong (US$35.15) per share, making it the most expensive stock on the market.

These shares were part of the 8.26 million listed by F88 on UPCoM – an alternative trading platform with lower listing requirements than the country’s main bourse, the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HoSE), and often regarded as a stepping stone before companies move to the latter.

F88 said it is operating 888 stores across 34 provinces and cities nationwide to date/ Photo credit: F88

Founded in 2013, F88 plans to list on HoSE by 2027 with a valuation of US$1 billion. It is currently the only pawn service company traded on Vietnam’s stock exchange.

“F88 clearly sees participation in the capital market not only as a means to enhance transparency and supervision but also as a financial driver to scale the business, improve operational standards, and move closer to the goal of listing on HoSE in the future,” chairman Phung Anh Tuan said in a statement.

According to its prospectus released on August 4, F88 plans a stock issuance between 2025 and Q1 2026 following its UPCoM listing, aiming to raise funds by issuing approximately 101.7 million new shares to existing shareholders at that point.

The pawnshop operator is backed by several foreign institutional investors, which collectively held over 55 percent of the company as at June this year.

Among them is Vietnam’s oldest private equity firm, Mekong Capital, which owned nearly 37 percent via two Singapore-based entities, Skydom and Winter Flame.

Serving the underbanked

F88 targets these underbanked and unbanked customers by offering short-term small loans secured by vehicles, registration papers or electronic devices.

Loans secured by motorbikes range from 3 million dong (US$118) to 50 million dong (US$1,970), while those secured by cars range from 23 million dong (US$905) to 2 billion dong (US$78,800).

The monthly interest rate is about 0.9 percent. Including loan management and asset management fees, the effective annual interest rate ranges from 32 to 55 percent, according to the company’s website.

In addition to vehicle title-lending products, F88 is also expanding into the microinsurance segment and banking agency services.

Through a strategic partnership with Military Commercial Joint Stock Bank (MBBank), F88 is positioning its branches as “modern financial transaction offices,” offering various basic services such as customer identification, cash deposits and withdrawals, money transfers, payment collection and disbursement.