Malaysia looks to Vietnam for investment opportunities

Vietnam remains an investment target despite the stops and goes in the stockmarket, rising inflation and questions about the countryÆs stability. Malaysia's RHB Capital has been given State Bank approval to buy a stake in Vietnamese brokerage firm Vietnam Securities Corporation, or VSEC.

While RHB Capital announced in March that it would pay M$13.3 million ($3.85 million) for a 49% stake in VSEC, the deal has only now received the necessary approvals.

Malaysian companies have been looking abroad recently for investment opportunities. For example, Malaysia's Maybank in March announced a plan to buy a 15% stake in Vietnam's An Binh Bank.

Maybank is expected to pay M$327 million for the stake û down from the earlier agreed price of M$430 million thanks to the economic environment in Vietnam, which has seen prices spiral lower. Vietnamese inflation is expected to top 25% this year.