Share deals and asset deals In a typical M&A operation, shares or assets of the target company may be assigned from the seller to the buyer. In a share deal, the buyer’s aim is to become one of the owners or the new owner of the target company by acquiring part or the whole of its equity capital. In an asset deal, the buyer acquires assets of the target company and is not, in principle, to have any stakes in its ownership. Both share deals and asset deals are legally recognised by the Law on Investment, Law on Enterprises and relevant regulations in Vietnam. Quite often in practice, however, share deals and asset deals are interchangeable: the parties would go for a share deal if they discovered an asset deal to be complicated or time-consuming. From the view of the buyers and sellers, share and asset deals are equally valid and lawful options for them to structure their deals, depending on which one will provide them with the largest benefits. Such practice may be observed in Vietnam, although, statistically, share deals outnumber asset deals. By contrast, it appears that the relevant State authorities, especially the courts, are somehow very reluctant to accept such business practice. Risks in M&A deals arise therefrom. A conservative judicial precedent In August 2020, in a case adjudicated on appeal by the High Court in Ho Chi Minh City, the target company was a one-member limited liability company wholly owned by the plaintiff (the Company). On 10 June 2014, the plaintiff and the respondent signed a capital contribution agreement (the CCA) whereby they agreed to...