Bao Viet Holdings (BVH) shareholders Wednesday agreed to a proposal by state-owned shipbuilding giant Vinashin Group to transfer its holdings in Bao Viet to State Capital Investment Corp. (SCIC).

Vinashin’s 20.4 million BVH shares will be transferred to SCIC, the government’s investment arm, according to reports on the Bao Viet Holdings shareholders’ meeting, Thoi Bao Kinh Te Saigon Online (Saigon Economic Times) reported.

Vinashin is one of the three founding shareholders of BVH, with a 3.56 per cent stake. It acquired the shares, worth a total of VND1.46 trillion (US$90 million), two years ago, at a price of VND72,000 per share.

BVH shares, now listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, have since fallen to about VND36,400 per share, at which price Vinashin would post a loss of more than VND630 billion upon transferring its stake to the SCIC.

Vinashin chairman Pham Thanh Binh said that the group decided to withdraw its capital from the BVH even though the stake represented one of Vinashin’s largest outside investments and one that helped the shipbuilder maintain stable insurance costs.