Vietnam's Oricombank expects 72 pct profit rise
HANOI, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Vietnam's Oricombank, 10 percent owned by France's BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA), expects its gross profit to jump 72 percent to around 400 billion dong ($25 million) this year, a state-run newspaper reported on Wednesday.
Oricombank, the short name for Phuong Dong Commercial Bank, also planned to issue convertible bonds to raise 1.2 trillion dong this year so it could nearly double its registered capital to 2 trillion dong, the Vietnam Economic Times newspaper said.
The unlisted Ho Chi Minh City-based bank said last month its gross profit rose 63.3 percent to 232 billion dong last year as its loans rose 62 percent.
BNP Paribas bought its stake in Oricombank last year, when top brewer Saigon Beer Alcohol Beverage Corp (Sabeco) bought a 5-percent stake.
Vietnam's central bank aims to limit bank loans growth to 30 percent this year after a jump of 37.8 percent last year. ($1=16,070 dong) (Reporting by Ho Binh Minh; Editing by Michael Battye)
