New space for innovation investment

Business Forum sat down with Mr. Hoang Duc Trung - Deputy General Director in charge of Operations of the VinaCapital Venture Capital Fund (VinaCapital Ventures), overseeing and managing the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund (HCM VIF) - to discuss this matter.

- Sir, Vietnam's stock market has gone through the first six months of the year with considerable volatility. Given the specific nature of VinaCapital Ventures, however, could you outline the fund's performance to date?

VinaCapital Ventures was established with a strategy of investing in technology enterprises capable of rapid growth, operating in Vietnam or closely connected to the Vietnamese market. Over the years, we have built a diverse investment portfolio spanning fintech, foodtech, digital healthcare, and e-commerce, as well as technology platforms serving digital transformation.

Beyond positive investment results – reflected in the fact that we began divesting from late 2024 – what we value even more is the ability to accompany founders in scaling their businesses, enhancing governance capacity, and connecting with networks of strategic partners at home and abroad, thereby creating sustainable economic value.

- What advantages does the current policy context offer for the fund's operations, sir?

It can be said that with Resolution 57-NQ/TW and Decision No. 21/2026/QD-TTg, this is the first time Vietnam has set out a comprehensive orientation for strategic technologies. We believe this is a favorable period for Vietnam's innovation ecosystem. The Government's repeated affirmation that science and technology, innovation, and digital transformation are new growth engines has sent a very positive signal, giving businesses, research institutes, universities, and investors a basis to plan for the long term.

In particular, identifying strategic technology groups such as artificial intelligence, semiconductors, big data, and biotechnology gives the market a clearer development direction. This not only helps businesses build long-term strategies but also helps investment funds better identify fields with the potential to create sustainable value.

More importantly, when the Government demonstrates its commitment to promoting innovation and directly participates through a public-private partnership model, the confidence of the private sector – both domestic and foreign – is also strengthened. This is a necessary condition to attract long-term capital into technology fields, which require a long horizon and a higher risk tolerance than many traditional industries.

- From a market perspective, could you share the difficulties, especially from the standpoint of the relationship between investment institutions and startups and technology firms?

I see several points. First is the gap in growth capital at later stages. We currently have many support programs for early-stage businesses, but when startups enter the scaling phase, capital needs can rise very quickly, along with more stringent requirements for governance, financial transparency, and operational capacity.

Second, technology tends to develop faster than the process of completing the legal framework. Many new business models require regulators both to support innovation and to ensure risk control and compliance. This is a challenge not only for Vietnam but for most emerging markets.

Third is the gap between research and commercialization. Many technologies and initiatives with potential are developed at research institutes and universities, but there are not yet sufficient mechanisms and resources to bring them to market. More effective connections among the research sector, businesses, and investors would help form more technology enterprises capable of growth and of creating higher value for the economy.

In addition, the startup ecosystem still needs more flexible and seamless exit channels together with a secondary-transaction mechanism to encourage venture capital to be reinvested into the next generation of enterprises. This is a very important factor for the sustainable development of the innovation-investment market.

- How do you forecast the picture of technology and startup growth in Vietnam over the 2027-2030 period?

I am quite optimistic about the prospects of Vietnam's technology ecosystem in the coming period. The growth momentum will come not only from digital-transformation demand but also from the need to raise productivity across the entire economy. This is a structural trend that will continue for many years.

We are witnessing the emergence of many new opportunities in fields such as artificial intelligence, semiconductors, biotechnology, fintech, green energy, and data infrastructure. These are all fields capable of creating high added value and attracting strong interest from global investors.

However, for Vietnam to truly break through, what matters is not only creating more startups but building large-scale technology enterprises that hold core technology and are capable of developing source technology in order to create regional and international competitiveness. To do so, we need to continue developing the capital market, attract long-term capital, and refine the mechanisms that support innovation.

In my view, the coming decade will determine whether Vietnamese technology companies are targets to be acquired or become active investors expanding across the region and globally; and whether Vietnam merely consumes technology or can create and own technology of its own. Looking further ahead, the development of technology enterprises not only contributes to economic growth but also helps enhance national competitiveness, attract high-quality human resources, and strengthen the foundation for national technological and financial self-reliance over the long term.

- Thank you very much, sir!