HO CHI MINH CITY — VinFast said it will secure lithium batteries for its electric vehicles by absorbing VinES, a sister company under a parent firm started by Vietnam’s richest man.
Vingroup founder Pham Nhat Vuong will give 99.8% of battery maker VinES to Nasdaq-listed VinFast, which announced the deal late Wednesday. Separately, out of a pledged $1 billion donation, Vuong gave lossmaking VinFast $291 million in September, while VinES has legal capital of $270 million, U.S. securities filings show.