Weekly Business News from Myanmar

Yoma Strategic Holdings will acquire 65 percent stakes in Yankin Kyay Oh Group of Companies Limited (YKKO) to satisfaction of certain conditions
Yoma Strategic Holdings Ltd. today announced it will acquire a 65% stake in Yankin Kyay Oh Group of Companies Limited (YKKO) subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, according to a press release. YKKO was founded in Yangon in 1988 and has since grown to become one of Myanmar’s largest restaurant chains with 37 outlets in Yangon, Mandalay, Nay Pyi Taw, Bago and Mawlamyine. The total cash consideration to be paid is approximately MMK 19.4 billion (US$12.6 million) which was arrived at on a willing-buyer willing-seller basis, taking into consideration, amongst others, the current and projected earnings of YKKO. The net tangible asset value of YKKO was approximately MMK 6.22 billion (US$4.09 million) as at 30 September 2018. The consideration will be funded by internal resources and recent financing activities and upon completion, YKKO will become a 65%-owned subsidiary of Yoma Strategic.
Bank experts seek the needs for further clarity over foreign equity in Myanmar banks
The latest regulation by the Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) permitting foreign institutions to invest up to 35 percent in local banks has been well-received by the banking and financial industry. However, experts have flagged the need for further clarity in its provisions. U Than Lwin, senior advisor to KBZ Bank, said the CBM should further clarify if foreign banks are allowed to invest solely in public banks or if they are free to invest in private banks or family-owned banks. “The new regulation by the CBM is good for the industry as weaker banks will enjoy stronger financing and improve their services. But they should be more specific about the types of banks foreign investors can invest in,” he said. U Pe Myint, senior advisor to Cooperative Bank, added that “if foreigners are now allowed to buy equity stakes in the local banks, then the next step is for the private banks to convert their status to public banks.”
Shan State government will be allowed local and foreign investments across seven sectors including basic infrastructure, hotel and tourism, agriculture, electricity and energy sectors in Shan State
Shan State government will allow local and foreign investments across seven sectors including basic infrastructure, hotel and tourism, agriculture, electricity and energy sectors in Shan State, sources said. The sectors are basic infrastructure and land development, natural resources, hotel and tourism, agriculture, electricity and energy and education. In basic infrastructure and land development, there are about 800 acres of development land and about 547 acres of non-development land in Yatsauk Township. While Yatsauk is on eof the least developed area in southern Shan State, investors are interested in the township as agriculture and livestock sectors has strong potential in the township. It also has a road connecting to northern Shan State. Businesses invited for natural resources sector are a cement factory in Ywangan, construction of fertilizer factory and others in Taunggyi-Ayethaya zone, China-Myanmar economic collateral and mining in Muse and Chinshwehaw.
Experts warned that the rate of sand mining in the Ayeyarwaddy River has already reached unsustainable level and destroying the livelihoods of farmers, fishers and placing environmental stress on the nation’s rice bowl
‘Our land is collapsing around us’: Ayeyarwady at risk from rampant sand mining Irresponsible sand mining in the Ayeyarwady River is destroying the livelihoods of farmers and fishers and placing environmental stress on the nation’s rice bowl. ON JANUARY 16, about 250 residents of Thet Thit Kyun village tract in Bago Region sailed in wooden boats on the Ayeyarwady River, to Shwedaung. They shouted slogans and brandished placards that read, “stop sand mining in the Ayeyarwady River”, “stop corruption in giving licences for mining” and “protect the rights of local fishermen and victims of riverbank erosion”. There were no sand dredging boats to be seen on the Ayeyarwady that day as the aggrieved fishers and farmers motored towards their destination. It was the Shwedaung Township office of the Directorate of Water Resources and Improvement of River Systems (DWIR), where they demanded an immediate halt to operations that they believed had triggered the collapse of their villages and plantations.
Siam Cement Group (SCG) revealed its 2018 operating results that show overall profit decease from the Chemicals Business
Siam Cement Group (SCG) recently revealed their 2018 Operating Results, they show an overall profit decrease from the Chemicals Business while the Packaging Business exhibited consistent and robust growth and Cement - Building Materials Business enjoyed favorable prospects. SCG is pushing forward with two key strategies in 2019, focusing on financial stability and long-term growth management by delivering integrated solutions and new business models that harness digital and deep technologies, and collaborate with leading startups in various regions and research and development institutes worldwide. SCG is also seeking new opportunities to meet consumer needs throughout the region. Mr. Roongrote Rangsiyopash, President and CEO of SCG, disclosed the company’s unaudited Operating Results for FY2018, with registered Revenue from Sales increase 6% y-o-y to 21,264 billion MMK. Profit for the year registered 1,989 billion MMK, a decrease of 19% y-o-y from global economic uncertainties, primarily driven by trade war, volatile oil market and a strengthening Thai baht, in which affected the overall performance of SCG.
Swiss form Symbiotics SA has made USD$ 2 million investment for a major microfinance fund to raise the latter’s debt capital and reach out to more clients in Myanmar
A Geneva-based company has made a US$2 million investment for a major microfinance fund in Myanmar. Swiss firm Symbiotics SA on February 5 signed a term loan with Hayman Capital, a microfinance institution (MFI) under Singapore’s International Investment Company, to raise the latter’s debt capital and reach out to more clients in Myanmar. Hayman Capital is a Myanmar-focused deposit-taking MFI established in 2014. It currently has more than 71,000 active customers, the company said in a statement. The total assets are disclosed at $18.05 million and equity at $10.61 million, with a 0.41 percent of having a portfolio at risk. The firm said that it will be targeting 15,000 new clients within the niche market “at the lower level”, comprising of trading, production, agriculture and service categories and appropriate for a loan of K200,000 or less.
Vice President called on rice traders and farmers to cooperate and have confidence in the contract farming system
Vice President U Henry Van Thio, the head of the Leading Committee for the Protection of Farmers Rights and Promotion of Interest, has called upon rice traders and farmers to control the quality and food safety standards for rice to ensure the ability for farmers to compete in markets, pledging that the Union Government would work to increase international rice quotas through government-to-government negotiations. Speaking at the Myanmar Rice Federation’s Annual General Assembly and Annual Meeting at the Mandalay Convention Centre yesterday, the Vice President said, “It is important for farmers, companies and businessmen to cooperate in the contract farming system, and have confidence, as the government is fulfilling the basic needs of farmers and the private sector, such as working through the Myanmar Rice Federation and NGOs, along with INGOs, which are cooperating with the government in helping farmers,” said U Henry Van Thio.
Myanmar’s parliament passed a controversial bill governing the gemstone sector by paving the way to restart licensing of mining companies after two year moratorium
Myanmar’s parliament has passed a controversial bill governing the gemstone sector, paving the way to restart the licensing of mining companies after a two-year moratorium. Upon taking office in 2016, the National League for Democracy-led administration suspended issuing new or extension of existing gemstone licences pending a governance review intended to clean up the sector. The new law is aimed at eradicating illegal mining and extraction of gems, tackle illicit gemstone trade, and reduce the environmental impact of extraction activities. The legal text seen by Myanmar Times only covers medium, small and artisanal-scale mining and limits the duration of permits to three, two and one year respectively. Lawmakers in the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw said large-scale mining is excluded from the legislation because of its negative environmental consequences.
Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) is taking the lead in implementation the new system of bank payments in Myanmar-China trade
The Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) has said it will allow traders to make payments through banks for conducting trading activities with China. The CBM will allow the payment facility beginning this year, and plans to grant permits to private banks to offer the facility. Under the new service, individual traders will be able to make transactions for the purchase and sale of legal goods through designated banks without having to open a bank account. U Bo Bo Nge, the Deputy Governor of the CBM, said the system will allow traders to use banks in Myanmar and China to pay for trade of goods that are legally recognized by both countries. The two nations have signed an agreement under which Chinese banks will exchange the yuan for other currencies when Myanmar banks have a large reserve of Chinese yuans, he said. The CBM has asked banks to submit proposals for permits for the payment system. The CBM is taking the lead in implementing the new system, he added.
With the funds support of German government via KfW Development Bank, Myanmar authorities will rehabilitate and extend the existing medium voltage distribution network in Southern Shan State
Access to energy is one of the preconditions for economic growth and poverty reduction. The Government of Myanmar is giving high priority to the electrification of the country and just achieved to increase the national electrification rate to 44 percent as H.E. U Win Khaing, Union Minister from the Ministry of Electricity and Energy, mentioned in a recent speech. By the end of this financial year 50 percent of all Myanmar households should be connected to the grid. The Managing Director of Electricity Supply Enterprise within Ministry of Electricity and Energy, U Saw Win Maung, and Project Director Mr. Juergen Kampa from Consulectra Unternehmensberatung GmbH singed a consulting contract for “Rural Electrification Program – Grid Extension Component” to be funded by the German Government via KfW Development Bank.