Japan's SMFG to invest up to 150bil yen in Vietnam's FE Credit

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TOKYO, May 2 (Reuters): Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc will invest up to 150 billion yen (US$1.38 billion) in Vietnam's biggest non-bank lender FE Credit, a spokesman said on Wednesday, as part of a strategy to look beyond a slow-growing domestic market.

SMFG, Japan's second biggest lender by assets, said in a statement its consumer finance unit would acquire a 49% stake in FE Credit. The Vietnamese firm's valuation was $2.8 billion, its parent company said in a separate statement.