In brief
With its young population and fast growing middle class, Vietnam's trading and retail market has become very attractive to foreign investors in recent years. The Vietnamese government has recently issued new regulations Decree 09/2018/ND-CP (Decree 09) on trading and trade-related activities of foreign-invested enterprises in Vietnam to provide greater transparency for investors. The new Decree 09 sheds light on various aspects of foreign investment in this field and is considered a major improvement to the previous legal framework.
In this podcast, Allens Partner Linh Bui discusses the key changes under Decree 09 and its implications for foreign investors. Topics covered include the:
- expanded definition of trading and trade-related activities subject to Decree 09;
- new rules on business and retail licences;
- application of the Economic Need Test to retail outlets set up by foreign invested companies; and
- new rules on M&A activities in the retail sector and how foreign investors can invest in a Vietnamese retail company.