Thai billionaire Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi’s company has received a total of VND9.3 trillion ($383 million) in cash dividends from brewer Sabeco since its acquisition of the company in 2017.
Brewer Saigon Beer is expected to pay its shareholders a total of VND1.92 trillion in cash dividends this year.
Its largest shareholder with a 53.6% stake, Viet Beverage – which is a subsidiary of Sirivadhanabhakdi’s Thai Beverage – will receive VND1.03 trillion.
This brings the total amount of cash dividend Thai Beverage has received from Sabeco since 2017 to VND9.3 trillion.
The dividend alone is equivalent to 8.4% of Thai Beverage’s VND110 trillion investment in the company.
Sabeco has paid regular cash dividends to its shareholders in recent years, with the aim of providing its shareholders with a sustainable and growing source of liquidity.
Last year, Thai Beverage CEO Thapana Sirivadhanabhakdi called Sabeco the “crown jewel” and a rare asset among all Southeast Asian brewers.
In 2021, Vietnam was the largest beer market in Southeast Asia and the third largest in Asia at $26 billion, behind China and Japan.
Sabeco, however, saw its after-tax profits fall 26% year-on-year in the first nine months to VND3.3 trillion, amid falling demand as Vietnam tightens its anti-alcohol laws driving.