As of the end of Q3/2026, the Ho Chi Minh City-based Mobile World Investment Corporation had allocated more than VND63 trillion ($2.44 billion) to bank deposits and financial investment instruments.
Mobile World Investment Corporation’s outlets. Photo by The Investor/Khanh An.
The consolidated financial statements for Q3/2026 of Mobile World (HoSE:MWG), showed that the company’s total assets stood at more than VND107.392 trillion ($4.16 billion) as of September 30, 2026, up nearly 28% from the beginning of the year.
One of the most notable features of MWG’s balance sheet was its exceptionally large portfolio of financial assets.
At the end of the reporting period, the company’s cash and cash equivalents totalled more than VND6.456 trillion ($250.2 million), an increase of approximately VND1.456 trillion ($56.43 million) from the start of the year. In addition, MWG held up to VND53.315 trillion ($2.07 billion) in short-term financial investments and VND3.264 trillion ($126.49 million) in investments held to maturity.
Combined, these items amounted to more than VND63 trillion ($2.44 billion), accounting for nearly 59% of MWG’s total assets. In other words, almost VND59 out of every VND100 in the company’s assets was held in cash and short- and long-term financial investments. This is a substantial figure, exceeding the total assets of many small- and medium-sized securities firms and banks.
More notably, these funds were allocated to income-generating financial instruments. According to the financial statement notes, of the more than VND53.315 trillion ($2.07 billion) in short-term financial investments, MWG held nearly VND31.895 trillion ($1.24 billion) in term deposits at banks, more than VND15.871 trillion in bonds, VND4.105 trillion ($159.09 million) in deposits with securities firms, and VND1.437 trillion in deposits structured as INFY investment contracts and entrusted investments with other parties, all with maturities of less than one year.
Its long-term financial investments, worth VND3.264 trillion, consisted entirely of bond investments across various sectors, including tourism (VND800 billion), banking (VND715 billion), real estate (VND1.15 trillion) and securities (VND400 billion), among others.
As a major retailer, MWG’s decision to allocate resources to financial instruments rather than holding them solely in demand deposits allows the company to generate returns on funds that are not immediately required, while maintaining the flexibility to meet its business needs.
Money “making” money
MWG’s financial asset portfolio, worth tens of trillions of dong ($387.54 million), has also made a significant contribution to its business performance. In the first nine months of 2026, MWG recorded nearly VND2.978 trillion ($115.41 million) in financial income, up approximately 31% year-on-year.
Of this amount, interest income from deposits, lending and investments alone exceeded VND2.615 trillion ($101.34 million), an increase of around 77% from VND1.475 trillion in the same period of 2025. This translated into average daily income of approximately VND9.6 billion ($372,040) over the nine-month period.
For the first nine months, MWG reported net revenue of nearly VND147.827 trillion ($5.73 billion) and net profit of VND9.634 trillion ($373.36 million), up 30% and 93%, respectively, from a year earlier. The results meant the company had achieved nearly 80% of its full-year revenue target of VND185 trillion ($7.17 billion) and exceeded its 2026 net profit target of VND9.2 trillion ($356.54 million) by nearly 5%.
By business segment, stores operated by Dien May Xanh Investment Joint Stock Company (DMX), which include the Thegioididong.com, Dien May Xanh, TopZone, EraBlue and Tho Dien May Xanh chains, continued to account for the bulk of the group’s revenue.
In the first nine months, the segment generated nearly VND99.2 trillion ($3.84 billion) in revenue after the elimination of intra-group transactions, up 29% year-on-year and accounting for approximately 67% of MWG’s consolidated revenue.
This represents a substantial source of income for a company whose core business revolves around retailing mobile phones, consumer electronics, food and consumer goods. Based on calculations, the segment’s profit contribution accounted for 31% of consolidated net profit over the same period.
The importance of financial income was particularly evident during MWG’s previous period of business difficulties. In 2023, as weakening consumer demand and an intense price war weighed on earnings, the company’s net profit plunged nearly 96% to just VND168 billion ($6.51 million). However, financial income still rose approximately 65% to VND2.167 trillion ($83.98 million), making a significant contribution to helping MWG avoid an annual loss.
Notably, after offsetting interest income from deposits, lending and investments against borrowing costs, MWG still recorded a positive net interest differential of approximately VND1.307 trillion ($50.65 million). This sizeable surplus partly reflects the company’s effectiveness in deploying temporarily idle capital.
At a broader level, as of September 30, 2026, MWG’s total liabilities stood at nearly VND55 trillion ($2.13 billion), while its cash and short-term financial investments amounted to nearly VND59.8 trillion, approximately VND4.8 trillion higher. Taken together, these two financial asset categories were equivalent to nearly 109% of the company’s total liabilities recorded on its balance sheet.
This structure indicates that MWG has substantial financial resources, giving it considerable flexibility in managing liquidity, meeting financial obligations and securing funding for business operations.
Holding a large portfolio of financial assets while maintaining bank borrowings may appear paradoxical, but it is not unusual in corporate financial management, particularly for companies operating at scale with continuous working capital requirements.
A company may simultaneously maintain bank deposits and borrow funds to manage the timing of cash inflows and outflows, ensure payment capacity and take advantage of different credit conditions. Bank deposits, certificates of deposit and bonds may have different maturity dates, while borrowings are used to finance inventories, settle supplier payments or meet other working capital requirements.
For MWG and the retail sector more broadly, cash flows are constantly moving between sales revenue, supplier payments, operating expenses, expansion investments and inventory requirements. At a sufficiently large scale of operations, even a modest improvement in the efficiency of deploying a portion of available funds can generate substantial financial income.
MWG’s ability to maintain a large financial asset portfolio while generating significant income from its investments therefore highlights its cash flow management capabilities and efforts to optimize capital efficiency, alongside its strengths in core retail operations.
Its strong financial position also provides a foundation for accelerating business expansion. A notable example is Bach Hoa Xanh, the group’s food and consumer goods retail chain, which opened 713 new stores in Q3/2026, with the pace of expansion accelerating month by month. In the first nine months of the year, the chain added a net 1,345 stores, bringing its nationwide network to 3,904 outlets.
