On the afternoon of April 17, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Science and Technology held a ceremony to launch the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund Joint Stock Company. Comrade Tran Luu Quang, Politburo member and Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee, attended.
Also in attendance were: Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Thanh Mai, member of the Party Central Committee and Director of Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City; Nguyen Manh Cuong, alternate member of the Party Central Committee, member of the City Party Committee's Standing Board and Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee; and Duong Anh Duc, member of the City Party Committee's Standing Board and Head of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee's Commission for Communications and Mass Mobilization.
The Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund's operating legal entity is the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund Joint Stock Company (HCM VIF JSC). Lam Dinh Thang, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Science and Technology, said this is an entirely new model - a local venture capital fund model under Decree 264, operating in the form of a joint-stock company.
This model has several breakthrough features: it is the first venture capital fund with State capital participation; a modern governance model; a "controlled risk acceptance" mechanism; a "liability exemption" mechanism; and a strategic vision, with a clear capital-scale target of VND 5,000 billion by 2035 and an investment focus on strategic "core technologies."
From an investor's perspective, Mr. Hoang Duc Trung, Director of VinaCapital Ventures, who has been tasked with operating the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund, shared that, with a scale of VND 500 billion in the initial phase and an expectation of reaching VND 5,000 billion after 10 years, the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund is not merely a set of financial figures but also represents the confidence of the city's leaders and its people in a future of growth based on technology and innovation.
"We set the goal that every dong of the Fund's capital will become a 'magnet' attracting an additional three to five dong from private and international investment funds, focusing on outstanding startup seeds in core technology fields and green, digital transformation solutions," Mr. Hoang Duc Trung said.
According to Lam Dinh Thang, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Science and Technology, the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund was created not only to invest, but to carry a mission of inspiration. "We believe that every dong of seed capital today will be a seed for the technology 'unicorns' of Vietnam's future to reach the global stage," the Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Science and Technology affirmed.
At the same time, the Department of Science and Technology committed to always standing side by side and taking the lead, together with departments, agencies, organizations and units across the city, in providing a list of promising projects and creating the best possible conditions for the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund Joint Stock Company to operate effectively and truly become a launchpad for the boldest ideas of Vietnamese innovative entrepreneurs.
Speaking at the launch ceremony, Nguyen Manh Cuong, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, stressed that the launch of the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund Joint Stock Company is a strong affirmation of the City's commitment to accompanying the innovation system and the innovative startup ecosystem.
Ho Chi Minh City's leaders committed to continue standing side by side and creating the most favorable conditions for providing capital under the project, to further strengthen support for incubating innovative startup projects and connecting commercialization efforts, in order to form many innovative startups with strong potential and high growth capacity for investment funds to evaluate and invest in effectively.
The Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee requested that the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Science and Technology and the city's departments and agencies continue to pay close attention, provide guidance and promptly resolve any problems that arise as the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund Joint Stock Company goes into actual operation.
"Together we must build a healthy innovative startup investment ecosystem, turning Ho Chi Minh City into a new center of innovation and a magnet drawing domestic and international innovative entrepreneurs to operate, invest and raise capital in order to build and develop the City," the Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee stressed.
The Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund was formed on the basis of the Government's Decree No. 264/2025/ND-CP and Decision No. 1267/QD-UBND of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee. It operates in the form of a joint-stock company under the Law on Enterprises, ensuring transparency and autonomy in governance and investment decision-making.
With an initial charter capital of VND 500 billion, of which the city budget contributes 40% (VND 200 billion), the remainder is mobilized from private investors, enterprises and reputable financial institutions.
This structure reflects a close public-private cooperation model: budget capital plays the role of building confidence and getting things started, while social resources are the key factor in scaling up the Fund over the long term.
Under its long-term roadmap to 2035, the city aims to raise the Fund's total charter capital to at least VND 5,000 billion, on the principle that mobilized social resources will account for at least 60% of total funding.
The Fund prioritizes investment in innovative startups, science and technology enterprises, and digital technology industry enterprises with rapid growth potential.
The priority fields include: artificial intelligence, big data, semiconductor microchip technology, biotechnology, green technology, automation and robotics…; along with digital economy, circular economy and digital transformation solutions aligned with the city's sustainable development orientation.
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