VinFast founder Pham Nhat Vuong has agreed to buy the EV maker’s research and development arm for $1.52 billion, his latest cash injection into the loss-making Vietnamese company, Reuters reported on Thursday.

The deal will involve Novatech Research and Development JSC, a Vietnam-incorporated entity, being carved out of VinFast Trading and Production JSC (VFTP), its domestic manufacturing arm, VinFast said in a filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Meanwhile, Novatech will hold investment costs tied to completed R&D projects, while VFTP will continue to lead EV production and future research in Vietnam, according to the report.

VinFast, which debuted on the Nasdaq in 2023, has faced challenges including weak consumer demand and stiff competition. It made a net loss of $712.4 million for the first quarter, even though revenue jumped 150 percent to $656.5 million.

Since its launch in 2017, the company has relied heavily on support from Vuong, who holds about 98 percent of shares in VinFast and its parent company Vingroup, where he serves as chairman.

The transfer of shares in Novatech to Vuong, valued at nearly 40 trillion dong ($1.52 billion), comprises a fair value assessment of 17.25 trillion dong plus a premium, according to the report.

Intellectual property linked to Novatech’s assets will be leased back to VinFast for manufacturing purposes as needed.

VinFast has said it has completed the development of its first generation of EVs. Research and development costs were $81.2 million in the first quarter of 2025, down 22.3 percent year-on-year.

The EV maker has set a delivery target of 200,000 cars for 2025, more than double its deliveries in 2024. Most of VinFast’s deliveries are in the Vietnamese market.

Earlier this month, VinFast has officially inaugurated its EV assembly plant at the SIPCOT Industrial Park in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, India.

This marks a major step in VinFast’s global expansion, reinforcing the company’s long- term commitment to the world’s third-largest automobile market and underscoring VinFast’s confidence in India’s strategic role in the future of the global EV industry, the firm said then.

In its initial phase, VinFast Tamil Nadu will focus on assembling two premium electric SUV models: the VF 7 and VF 6.

The plant’s starting capacity is 50,000 vehicles per year, scalable up to 150,000 units annually to meet rising market demand.

With the launch of the Tamil Nadu plant, VinFast said it moves closer to its 2025 sales target of 200,000 vehicles and its long-term production goal of 1 million vehicles per year by 2030.

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