Potential buyer of LG Electronics’ smartphone business named

As we previously reported, this week LG Electronics executives confirmed plans to close or sell the smartphone division. This direction of activity was unprofitable for many years, and the South Korean manufacturer considered it futile to further attempts to change the situation.

According to the source, negotiations on the sale are already underway. The large Vietnamese conglomerate Vingroup participates in them, which made LG Electronics the most attractive offer.

Vingroup has a market capitalization of $ 16.5 billion. This is 14% of the total market capitalization of all Vietnamese listed companies. The company operates in a variety of business areas including hotels and tourism, real estate, distribution, construction, automobiles and cell phones. Vingroup primarily focuses on the local market.

The conglomerate entered the smartphone market in 2018. It manufactures smartphones for LG Electronics on ODM terms. It is currently the third largest smartphone manufacturer in Vietnam after Samsung Electronics and Oppo.

Vingroup reportedly expects to enter the US market through the deal. LG Electronics had a 12.9% share of the North American smartphone market in 2020.