Vietnam internet start-up VNG withdraws IPO filing in US, as game publisher weighs future plans

Vietnamese internet start-up VNG Ltd withdrew its registration for an initial public offering in the US, raising questions about the gaming and messaging company’s growth plans.

The company determined not to conduct a registered offering at this time and plans to file a new registration in the future, according to a statement on the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s website Monday. The statement doesn’t provide any time frame or reasons for the withdrawal.

VNG, whose headquarters are in Ho Chi Minh City, declined to comment on the filing.

The company, considered one of Vietnam’s most promising tech start-ups, already postponed its IPO plans in September until market demand improved, Bloomberg News reported. It had filed for an IPO in August, planning to offer almost 22 million shares.

Formerly known as Vinagame, VNG had its start in 2004 as a game publisher. It develops and publishes its own titles as well as local versions of international hits, and has gradually expanded to a wide range of services, such as music sharing, video streaming, messaging and mobile payments. It has been exploring going public in the US since at least 2017.

Shares of VNG, currently listed on Vietnam’s Unlisted Public Company Market, known as UpCom, fell as much as 6 per cent on Tuesday, the most since January 16.