Warburg sees opportunity after a successful Vincom IPO

Jeffrey Perlman of Warburg Pincus is bullish on Vietnam and worried about companies with a high cash-burn rate. In an interview with DealStreetAsia, the Warburg managing director also outlined his views of the market heading into 2020.

“Investors have increasingly woken up to the opportunities here in Southeast Asia, and we’ve seen that especially over the last 12 to 18 months.”

Jeffrey Perlman on Risk 

Perlman said that opportunities are emerging in Vietnam due to optimism over recent dealmaking. Recently, Warburg cheered as real estate and retail corporation Vincom Retail launched its $740-million IPO in November 2017. Perlman said deals like the Warburg-backed Vincom have “definitely refocused investors on the market [in Vietnam].”
On the other hand, Perlman appeared bearish on Indonesia in the wake of the nations’ recent election. “There’s still that kind of overhang that comes after an election,” Perlman said.

That said, he did suggest that recent economic reforms could provide a boost to the nation’s economy.

“If you have a longer-term horizon and point of view I think some of the continued reforms should position Indonesia in a good spot if you look out five to seven years from now,” he said.

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