F88 to sponsor gender equality promotion

F88 launched a loan package on March 8 specifically for female customers with half the cost of a normal loan.

The new product is part of activities that aim to bring benefits to female employees and customers after the Australian Development Investment Organization (ADI) provided F88 with technical assistance.

The goal of the sponsorship is to support F88's diversity initiatives to promote fairness and gender equality within the company, increasing the presence of women in leadership positions and in company services.

Photo courtesy of F88

"I look forward to seeing how F88 and other lending institutions expand their customer base by customising products for thousands of women-led businesses in Vietnam," Hordern said.

Before receiving support from ADI, F88 was a partner of Lendable with an investment of $10 million of foreign funds for a convenience store chain. Lendable, after working with F88, introduced the partner to the ADI as a business that regularly organises activities for the community, including on promoting gender equality.

Lendable currently operates in 12 markets. It is pleased to be the bridge connecting the ADI and F88, helping its partner create financial products for women as well as strategic gender initiatives in the company, said Lienda Kavindele, head of Impact and ESG at Lendable.

"F88's initiatives in supporting low-income self-employed women are vital and reflect a vision of inclusive economic development," Kavindele explained. "We appreciate that F88 not only focuses on the external but also implements internal gender equality programmes, demonstrating its commitment to positive change both in business and the workplace."

Photo courtesy of F88

According to statistics from the Ministry of Finance for 2023, women make up 47 per cent of the Vietnamese workforce. However, the female workforce is largely at an unprofessional level; jobs such as housekeeping performed by female workers account for 94.7 per cent of the total number of hired workers.

During the pandemic period, the unemployment rate of female workers was higher than that of male workers. As a result, the difficulties women face in being financially independent has been the motivation for F88 to launch loan products specifically for them.

Phung Anh Tuan, general director of F88, said that in the past five years, since receiving investment from foreign funds, the company has been able to increasingly focus on gender equality.

"Currently, the proportion of female employees in the company is 53 per cent, of which 20–30-year-olds account for nearly 70 per cent," Tuan said. "Those holding management positions account for 45 per cent, and those holding executive management positions account for approximately 20 per cent."

The proportion of female customers is currently 30 per cent, and female customer growth in 2022 compared to 2021 reached 234 per cent.

"Becoming a partner of Lendable and ADI in gender equality initiatives is a great achievement for us, and it demonstrates that our efforts have been highly appreciated by the community," Tuan added.

F88 receives $50 million credit via Lending Ark Asia Financial services chain F88 has raised new credit valued at $50 million through Lending Ark Asia.

F88 to pilot new loan product for female entrepreneurs F88 Business JSC will pilot a new loan product for female entrepreneurs in early 2024 in a bid to advance gender equality.

F88 raises $50 million in Series C funding round F88 Investment JSC announced that it successfully raised a Series C investment of $50 million. The two main investors in this round are Vietnam-Oman Investment Fund and the Mekong Enterprise Fund IV.