Thai Seamico Securities to buy into Vietnamese firm

BANGKOK, Sept 5 - Thailand's Seamico Securities PCL said on Friday it would buy a 25 percent stake in a securities firm in Vietnam as part of its plan to expand overseas.

The brokerage did not say how much it had paid, but it said in a statement to the Thai stock exchange that it could eventually take up to 49 percent in Vietnam's Thanh Cong Securities Co J.S.C.

Thanh Cong Securities has registered capital of $21.5 million and Thanh Cong Textile Garment is a major shareholder, the statement said.

Vienam's main stock index <.VNI>, which rose 24 percent last year after jumping 145 percent in 2006, has lost 41 percent this year, hit by global credit woes and soaring domestic inflation.

Seamico, ranked seventh among Thailand's 38 listed brokers, focuses on underwriting share and debt issues as well as advising companies on initial public offerings.

The Thai firm has said it expected to receive a licence to enter Cambodia later this year.

It posted a second-quarter net profit of 28.15 million baht .

At 0829 GMT, Seamico shares were unchanged at 2.22 baht while the overall index <.SETI> was 1.38 percent lower.