Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund established with VND 500 billion

The Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund was established with initial capital of VND 500 billion, of which the City budget contributes 40%, equivalent to VND 200 billion, with the remainder mobilized from reputable private investors and financial institutions...

On the afternoon of April 17, at the Ho Chi Minh City Startup and Innovation Center (SIHUB), the City's Department of Science and Technology held a ceremony to announce the establishment of the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund Joint Stock Company (HCM VIF JSC).

The launch of the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund not only marks a new milestone in the City's economic-development strategy but also opens up great opportunities for startups in the fields of technology and innovation.

The Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund was established with initial capital of VND 500 billion, of which the City budget contributes 40%, equivalent to VND 200 billion, with the remainder mobilized from reputable private investors and financial institutions. This is a close public-private cooperation model, demonstrating the City's determination to build trust and to activate social resources for innovation.

According to Mr. Lam Dinh Thang, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Science and Technology, this fund will operate under a joint stock company model, ensuring autonomy and transparency in governance and investment decision-making.

One of the important highlights of the fund is the participation of reputable founding shareholders such as Sovico Group, Vingroup, Becamex Group, VinaCapital, Sunwah Group, VNG, CT Group, Hoa Sen Group, and FPT. With the presence of these big names, the fund has not only strong financial resources but also international-standard governance thinking and a vast market network.

Mr. Hoang Duc Trung, Director of the VinaCapital Ventures fund and the person in charge of operating the fund, stressed that the fund will focus on Series A and B funding rounds – the stage at which many Vietnamese startups are hungry for capital to break through in scale.

Speaking at the launch, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Nguyen Manh Cuong affirmed that the birth of the fund is a breakthrough answer to the problem of early-stage investment capital, marking a historic step in translating the central government's major guidelines on science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation into action. The City is committed to continuing to accompany the fund and to creating every favorable condition for it to operate on market principles – transparently and effectively – to become a magnet attracting social resources for the innovative startup ecosystem.

In addition, the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund is not merely a source of financial capital but also a strategic tool to promote the development of startups in key fields such as artificial intelligence, big data, semiconductor microchip technology, biotechnology, green technology, automation, and robotics. These are fields with rapid growth potential aligned with the City's sustainable-development orientation.

With a long-term vision, Ho Chi Minh City aims to raise the fund's total charter capital to at least VND 5,000 billion by 2035, on the principle that mobilized social resources account for at least 60% of total funding. This demonstrates the City's strong commitment to promoting innovation and to technology-based economic development.

The birth of the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund is regarded as a strategic move that not only helps unblock the capital bottleneck for startups but also creates a healthy investment environment, attracting the interest of domestic and foreign investors.