Completion of acquisition of WSE Vietnam

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 ("MAR"). Upon the publication of this announcement via a Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.

14 July 2020

Myanmar Strategic Holdings Ltd.

("MSH" or the "Company")

Completion of acquisition of Wall Street English Vietnam,

a leading provider of English Language Training in Vietnam

Myanmar Strategic Holdings Ltd. (LSE: SHWE), the independent developer and operator of consumer businesses in Myanmar and Vietnam, is pleased to announce that, further to its announcement on 26 May 2020, its wholly owned subsidiary MS English 2 Pte. Ltd. has today completed the acquisition of the entire charter capital of Wall Street English Limited Liability Company ("WSE Vietnam"), a leading provider of English Language Training ("ELT") services in Vietnam (the "Acquisition").

WSE Vietnam caters to the premium ELT market, focusing exclusively on adult learning, and offers its services through a flexible and integrated blended learning solution that can be delivered entirely online.

As of 30 April 2020, WSE Vietnam served over 6,000 students at 7 centres located in Ho Chi Minh and Binh Dhuong. The centres will continue to operate under ten-year Centre Franchise Agreements with Wall Street English International on terms similar to those in place for Wall Street English Myanmar.

For the twelve-month period ended 30 April 2020, WSE Vietnam generated unaudited revenues of approximately US$13.8 million (VND321.6 billion) and incurred a net loss of US$1.4 million (VND33.7 billion). As at 30 April 2020, its gross assets amounted to US$3.4 million (VND79.5 billion).  

For more information please visit www.ms-holdings.com or contact:

Notes to editors

Myanmar Strategic Holdings Ltd.

Myanmar Strategic Holdings Ltd. (LSE: SHWE) is an independent developer and manager of consumer businesses in Myanmar and Vietnam, one of the fastest growing economies in the world. The Company's portfolio currently focuses on Education, Services and Hospitality with the view to expand within the broader consumer sector.

Education sector: the Company currently has exclusive development and franchising agreements with Wall Street English for ten English language centres across Myanmar over the course of the ten-year agreement. Two centres were opened in 2017, a third in August 2018, and a fourth in February 2020. As of April 2020, Wall Street English Myanmar served over 4,000 students since its inception.

In July 2020, the Company completed the acquisition of the Wall Street English business in Vietnam. Founded in 2013, the WSE Vietnam business operates through seven centres in Ho Chi Minh and Binh Dhuong, serving over 6,000 students.  

The Company also operates a joint venture with Auston Institute of Management to develop and operate the Auston College Myanmar. The private school opened in May 2018 offering diplomas in Engineering Technology, Mechanical Engineering and Networking, Information Systems, and Security. English language learning is also provided by the Company's nearby Wall Street English centre. In February 2020, the Company announced a partnership with Liverpool John Moores University to provide high quality engineering training programmes for young, working professionals in Myanmar, to be taught by Auston College Myanmar's teaching staff at its Junction Square complex in Yangon.

The Company launched its first private K-12 international school, the Yangon American International School in Yangon, in August 2019.

Services sector: through its acquisition of EXERA, the Company offers security, risk management and secure logistics services, including cash-in-transit. Founded in 2013, EXERA employs approximately 1,300 well-trained and high-quality security officers making it one of the largest security services providers in Myanmar.

Hospitality sector: through its portfolio, the Company currently manages over 470 beds across four boutique hotels in three core tourist locations across Myanmar, operating under the award winning Ostello Bello budget hospitality brand. MSH operates an asset light strategy, entering into long-term operating and management agreements with local hotel owners.

Myanmar was one of the fastest growing economies in Asia in 2017-2019 (Source: Asian Development Bank). In 2020 and 2021, its annual GDP growth is expected to be respectively 2% and 6% (Source: Asian Development Bank).  

MSH is well positioned to provide investors early exposure to Myanmar's strong economic fundamentals enhanced by ASEAN's wider growth prospects. 

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Wall Street English

Founded in Italy in 1972, acquired by Pearson in 2010 and currently owned by a private equity consortium, Wall Street English ("WSE") is one of the largest global English language learning franchises in the world. WSE currently serves over 162,000 students across 422 learning centres located in Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. Utilising both company-owned and franchised centres, WSE has provided instruction to over 3 million people.