Shinhan Financial Group – South Korea's second-largest banking behemoth – said on May 2 that it has agreed to acquire a 10 per cent interest in Vietnam’s e-commerce player Tiki, making it the company’s third-largest stakeholder. The deal fee remains unknown, according to Kedglobal.

Shinhan Bank, which is the largest foreign lender in Vietnam in terms of assets, will acquire a 7 per cent share in Tiki. Its affiliate Shinhan Card will be in charge of the remaining 3 per cent.

Shinhan Vietnam recently announced its summary audited financial statement for 2021, which showed a pre-tax profit of around $137 million, an increase of 3 per cent over the previous year.

Tiki, a popular e-commerce platform in Vietnam, has amassed more than 20 million consumers and provides rapid delivery services for anything from groceries to insurance goods. Last year, life insurer AIA Vietnam became Tiki’s exclusive insurance partner.

In a statement, Shinhan said, "By forming a strategic alliance with Tiki, Shinhan will diversify its customer base, upgrade credit evaluation systems based on non-financial information, and cope better with the digital environment. Based on Shinhan’s financial expertise and Tiki’s database in a broad range of areas, we are expecting to build a new converged digital ecosystem in Vietnam.”

Previously, Shinhan Bank was rumoured to be the next financial backer of Tiki with a predicted fund of around $40 million, as cited by Dealstreetasia. Shinhan Bank, along with its commercial banking activities, is keen on supporting Vietnam’s burgeoning startup ecosystem.