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📌 WHY VIETNAM? - A new yet potential destination for AgriTech

Regardless of the difficulties amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries sector emerged as one of the “supporting platforms” of the 2021 economy, achieving a growth rate of 2.9%. higher than 2.58% growth rate of the whole economy, creating momentum for the recovery and acceleration in 2022. For proactivity and flexibility in production administration, in 2021, the agricultural industry has achieved many positive results, many development targets have been met and exceeded the set plan.

👉 Find out more about Agritech Vietnam here: https://vicgo.co/2022/04/agritech_vietnam/

📌 WHY VIETNAM? – A potential market for SaaS after the wave of COVID-19 pandemic

From little awareness of Saas (Software as a service) in 2019, from 2020 until now, the COVID-19 has triggered a significant increase in the attention of investors for the SaaS sector in Vietnam as the demand for digital transformation rises. With the presence of large technology corporations, M&A has become a common divestment strategy for startups seeking for larger market share and financial support.

The article aims to give an overview of the SaaS Market in Vietnam, current startups that are the focus of attention from investors as well as the opportunities and challenges within the SaaS sector.

👉 Please read the full article here: https://vicgo.co/2022/04/saas_vietnam/

📌 WHY VIETNAM? - A developing country with great potential for E-commerce

Being a developing country with a population of 98.56 million and the increase in the middle-income class as well as a high adoption rate of E-commerce during and after COVID-19 pandemic, Vietnam has become the potential country for developing the greatest E-commerce startups. Though crowded in the B2C sectors, there are potential startups in B2B E-commerce who have attracted a lot of attention from both local and foreign investors. Evidence for such interest is that in 2021, E-commerce came 2nd only to Fintech in the total amount of capital raised.

The article aims to give an overview of the E-commerce Market in Vietnam, current startups that are the focus of attention from investors as well as the opportunities and challenges within the E-commerce sector.

👉 Please read the article here: https://vicgo.co/2022/03/e-commerce_vietnam/

Capture Vietnam’s investment landscape in 2021 - VICGO - Your trusted partner to success

📌 CAPTURE INVESTMENT LANDSCAPE OF VIETNAM IN 2021

Vietnam is expected to become the third largest startup and innovation hub in Southeast Asia, only after Singapore and Indonesia in 2022, according to the Southeast Asia Startup Ecosystem 2.0 report by Golden Gate Ventures. This projection is relevant to the current investment landscape of Vietnam when 2021 witnessed a lion’s share of capital (over $1.3 billion) poured into the startup ecosystem which is fourfold compared to the 2020’s figure. The 5 sectors that attract the most amount of funds are Fintech, E-commerce, Edtech, Medtech and SaaS.

The article aims to give an overview of the Investment landscape in Vietnam, current attractive sectors, as well as what investors should expect in 2022 and the drivers of that.

👉 You can read the article here: https://vicgo.co/2022/03/vietnams-investment-landscape-2021/

Capture Vietnam’s investment landscape in 2021 - VICGO - Your trusted partner to success Capture Vietnam’s investment landscape in 2021 Vietnam is expected to become the third largest startup and innovation hub in Southeast Asia, only after Singapore and Indonesia in 2022, according to the Southeast Asia Startup Ecosystem Read more…

WHY VIETNAM? - A 'promised land' for Fintech bloom and thrive in Southeast Asia

Under the profound impacts of COVID-19, 2021 has created a momentum in the global digitization process, affirming a strong foundation for the robust rise of the FinTech field worldwide. This year also witnessed the outstanding development of Vietnam’s FinTech market, proven by the surging number of digital financial services users, increasing foregin investments and supportive government policies. Therefore, Vietnam becomes the forefront of FinTech growth with more diversified and enhanced products. So, along with the hype of thriving Vietnam’s Fintech and global digitalization, where is Vietnam on the world FinTech map and what makes Vietnam an appealing FinTech destination for investors both internationally and domestically?

👉 Let's find out in this article from VICGO: https://vicgo.co/2022/03/fintech_vietnam/

[Market overview] EdTech of Vietnam

The education sector has significantly attracted the attention of investors in search of more opportunities, in which EdTech is the rising star with estimated value of up to $3 billion. This article will give you an overview of the EdTech market in Vietnam, trends towards its development and analysis of challenges and opportunities encountered by EdTech.
https://vicgo.co/2022/03/edtech_vietnam/

Tại sao mô hình Open Innovation tăng tỷ lệ thành công của Startup Việt? | Huỳnh Công Thắng

Việt Nam được đánh giá là “ngôi sao đang lên” trong thị trường Đông Nam Á và chỉ đứng sau Indonesia và Singapore về tốc độ tăng trưởng của hệ sinh thái khởi nghiệp. Tuy nhiên, với hơn 1,3 tỷ đô được đầu tư vào Việt Nam năm 2021 và với 3800 startups toàn thị trường, chỉ 147 startups đủ điều kiện nhận được vốn đầu tư. Vậy đâu là những rào cản ngăn hệ sinh thái khởi nghiệp Việt Nam tiến xa hơn?

Tại sao mô hình Open Innovation tăng tỷ lệ thành công của Startup Việt? | Huỳnh Công Thắng Việt Nam được đánh giá là “ngôi sao đang lên” trong thị trường Đông Nam Á và chỉ đứng sau Indonesia và Singapore về tốc độ tăng trưởng của hệ sinh thái khởi ...

VIETNAM BECOMES PREFERRED DESTINATION FOR ASIAN INVESTORS
Source: VIR

Vietnam has been climbing the ranks of preferred deal making destinations for some of the top Asian investors as the country boasts bright prospects for economic growth in the region.
Japan-based Mizuho Bank is scheduled to buy 7.5 per cent of Vietnamese firm M-Service, which manages the e-wallet MoMo, in a deal worth $170 million. The transaction, which is anticipated to close by the end of the year, would result in collaboration between the payment app and Vietcombank, a Vietnam-based bank in which Mizuho previously invested. MoMo controls more than half of the payments business in Vietnam, and its 20 million users would become part of a super-app.

Meanwhile, Japanese mega financial institution Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMFG) has acquired 49 per cent stake in Vietnam's largest consumer finance company FE Credit. The Japanese bank is investing more than $1.4 billion in FE Credit, making it the largest deal of Vietnam's mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market this year.
Speaking at the Vietnam M&A Forum 2021, Masataka “Sam” Yoshida, head of the cross-border Division of RECOF Corporation and CEO of RECOF Vietnam Co., Ltd. said, "Although the COVID-19 pandemic has lowered M&A activities in Vietnam in 2020 and in the first 10 months of 2021, Vietnam is the second M&A market for Japanese investors in ASEAN, trailing behind only Singapore in terms of the value of transactions. In the past, Vietnam was hardly among the top three countries due to the difference in the size of enterprises."

According to RECOF’s M&A database, Vietnam achieved a deal value of $416 million in 2020, which was 2.95 times as much as in 2017. In addition, there was an exceptional deal in 2021 between SMBC Consumer Finance and VP Bank. This deal, together with other transactions, helps Vietnam to solidify its second position in Southeast Asian countries.
"The interest of Japanese investors in Vietnam continues to be strong. Despite the pandemic situation, Vietnam is sixth on the list of M&A destinations for Japanese investors so far this year. India and China, which are ranked fourth and fifth respectively, fluctuate in this annual ranking, so it is not out of the way that Vietnam can overtake them."

Yoshida further pointed out that M&A in Vietnam will be a trendy activity for Japanese companies that has the potential to last for years to come. The first trigger is that Japanese investors have to find new markets outside of Japan as most of the sectors in the country have reached maturity. For instance, 29 per cent of the Japanese population is over 65 years old, meaning the average age of Japanese people is almost 20 years higher than the Vietnamese population.
"The second trigger is using M&A as a growth strategy, which is backed up by the abundant accumulated cash during the last 20 years – reaching $2.12 trillion as bank deposits," Yoshida said. "Due to the increasing pressure from shareholders, the money has started to flow into the M&A market which broke records in 2021 with over 4,000 deals for all segments."

Also at the Vietnam M&A Forum 2021, Warrick Cleine, chairman and CEO of KPMG Vietnam and Cambodia, said that financiers from markets in South Korea, China, and Taiwan are strong believers in the development potential of Vietnam. To illustrate, for the first time China has been ranked in the top 5 funding sources for M&A in Vietnam in 2021, with eight deals worth nearly $600 million so far this year.

In May, Alibaba Group led a $400 million funding in the retail unit of Vietnamese conglomerate Masan Corporation, marking its first investment in one of Asia's fastest-growing economies.
And in August, the second-largest mobile operator in Taiwan, Taiwan Mobile, invested $20 million in Tiki's Series E funding round, also entering the Vietnamese market.

The latest report by KPMG on M&A in Vietnam reveals that South Korean investors have completed 19 transactions worth $621 million in the first 10 months of the year. South Korean investors still consider Vietnam one of the most attractive markets due to solid economic growth and prospects.

In terms of geographical location, as large South Korean companies including Samsung, LG, Hyosung, and Hyundai Motors established production sites or subsidiaries in the northern region of Vietnam, other companies will follow, resulting in more South Korean investments in the northern region. However, investment in the southern regions including Ho Chi Minh City has been increasing as the consumer market and overall growth of the regional economy in the city and the southern region are more attractive.
According to the report, sectors that draw attention from South Korean investors include e-commerce, fintech, and logistics. The growing interest in e-commerce and fintech is in line with the attraction of businesses that do not require personal contact.
Experts at the Vietnam M&A Forum 2021 agreed that Vietnam's M&A market remains on the radar of Asian investors. In 2020, Vietnam is still one of the three countries and territories that achieve positive economic growth in Asia. The country is expected to post a GDP growth of 3-3.5 per cent. The Vietnamese government has taken quick action to boost post-pandemic recovery. All of these factors are expected to contribute to a rebound in deal making activity post-pandemic.