Japanese stationery and office furniture manufacturer Kokuyo is set to inject US$177 million into an investment vehicle to acquire the controlling stake in Vietnamese stationery maker Thien Long Group.

Kokuyo’s board has resolved to increase the capital of Synergy Investing Asia, its wholly owned Singapore company, by 28 billion yen ($177 million), according to a stock exchange filing last week.

Synergy Investing Asia was established late last year with a charter capital of $0.78, as Kokuyo began its plan to acquire up to 65.01 per cent of Thien Long. The Japanese firm said at the time that the move was part of its strategy to become Asia’s leading stationery company by 2030.

Under the plan, the company would achieve this target via two transactions. 

The first transaction is the acquisition of shares of Thien Long An Thinh Investment Corporation, which currently holds 46.82 per cent of Thien Long Group’s shares.

The second transaction is a tender offer of up to 18.19 per cent of Thien Long Group’s outstanding shares.

Following completion of these deals, both Thien Long Group and Thien Long An Thinh will become ‘designated subsidiaries’ of Kokuyo, given that the capital of each entity accounts for more than 10 per cent of Kokuyo’s capital. Closing of the transactions is subject to the necessary approvals of the Vietnamese authorities. 

In the original plan, Kokuyo expected the acquisition of Thien Long An Thinh shares to be completed this August. However, the completion has been delayed, as Vietnam’s National Competition Commission did not approve the proposed transaction until September 9.

The tender offer is expected to take place after the Thien Long An Thinh deal closes. Kokuyo previously expected to process to conclude in November.