Venture capitals continue to bet on domestic startups

“We are in the process of closing some deals and expect to wrap it up within the next few months. After that, we will stop investing in new companies but will continue to contribute more capital to companies within our existing portfolio,” said Hoang Duc Trung, parter of VinaCapital Ventures.

Vietnamese startups typically boast creative founders with fertile ideas, Photo: Shutterstock

Meanwhile Erik Jonsson, partner at Antler Vietnam, said, “We are extremely bullish on this market and will do our best to defend our position as the most active investor here, targeting to invest in 25-30 Vietnamese startups within 2023.”

While VinaCapital Ventures has launched its second fund since 2018 and disbursed $26 million to 17 companies, Antler Vietnam was set up in 2020 and has provided seeding investment to 25 startups. Having coached close to 250 founders in Antler’s startup accelerator programme, Jonsson said that Vietnamese founders have a way to do a lot with a little.

“My impressions about Vietnamese startups is that the openness and attitude of founders is almost always incredible. The hunger to learn and grow as quickly as possible, taking inspiration from other markets, is one I encounter over and over again,” said Jonsson. “They find creative ways to keep their runway long and build great things through true grit and frugality. I keep meeting startups that showcase serious products, produced with very little means. It’s always impressive to see.”

However, Vietnamese founders should think bigger and dig deeper. “I meet many founders who are focusing on problems that sometimes are not big enough to be suitable for venture capital investors. I’d love to see them think on a bigger scale, daring to tackle a huge and urgent problem that could create a $100 million revenue business, instead of something niche,” said Jonsson.

Trung of VinaCapital Ventures added that many startups still lack the depth within their solutions. “Instead of focusing on solving a problem completely, many seem to jump from one trend to another too fast.”

According to Trung, corporate governance and financial management are still challenges for many startups and will hinder their development in the long term if execution is not addressed properly.

Jonsson suggested that Vietnamese startups maximise their chances to scale. “They should choose a large and growing problem to address, but be detailed and patient. Be disciplined and ensure you have enough validation and traction before moving on to the next fundraise or phase of growth.”

VinaCapital Ventures expects to deliver a return on investment of 20 per cent per year. It is set to launch its third venture fund in the second half of 2023, focusing on large investments in later-stage firms with innovative tech solutions.

VinaCapital Ventures takes stake in insurtech startup GlobalCare VinaCapital Ventures, the technology investment platform of VinaCapital Group, on September 13 announced that it has invested in GlobalCare, an insurtech company that provides solutions for the sales and administrative processes of insurance agencies and business partners selling non-life insurance policies.

VinaCapital Ventures invests in cross-border e-commerce experience Dutycast VinaCapital Ventures, the technology investment platform of VinaCapital Group, on September 27 announced that it has taken a stake in Dutycast, the creator of a tool that eases the cross-border e-commerce experience for shoppers by providing transparency around final prices, duties, taxes, and related logistics expenses.

VinaCapital Ventures invests in Hub Global JSC VinaCapital Ventures, the technology investment platform of VinaCapital Group, on December 21 announced that it has invested in Hub Global JSC, a blockchain eco-platform that is focused on supporting the development of promising Vietnamese startups creating blockchain solutions across a range of verticals.