Minister makes strong commitments to innovation investments

Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung speaks at the summit.

He made the commitment during the Vietnam Venture Summit 2019 held in Hanoi on June 10. The event saw over 100 investment funds in attendance.

The minister also committed to holding regular dialogues and discussions with venture capital funds whilst co-ordinating closely with relevant ministries and agencies to put forward proper solutions aimed to swiftly solve difficulties in pushing the additional inflows of capital into the innovation ecosystem.

Through the National Innovation Center and other initiatives on developing human resources and increasing innovation in domestic firms, Dung promised to aid entrepreneurs in seeking financial sources and connecting with domestic and overseas innovation ecosystems, so that they are able to grasp additional quality investment opportunities.

He affirmed that Vietnam is a new destination with great potential for investors, adding this serves as a crucial premise for the country to “catch up, go along with, and stand out from" creative and innovative achievements during Industry 4.0.

The country’s entrepreneurial ecosystem has grown impressively in both quantity and quality in recent years. In 2012, there were approximately 400 domestic startup companies founded. This figure quadrupled to 1,800 in 2015 and has so far reached the 3,000 mark.

According to a 2018 entrepreneurship investment report by Topica Founder Institute (TFI), Vietnamese startups received US$889 million from the 92 investment deals they inked with domestic and foreign funds last year. The figure tripled the figure of 2017 and increased six times from 2016.

An insight report by KrAsia and Bain & Co. indicates that the country attracted an investment flow of around US$150 million in 2018, doubling the level of 2017.

Early stage startups in Vietnam are estimated to attract the total investment worth up to US$205 million this year. This figure is forecast to leap to US$320 million and US$440 million in 2020 and 2021, respectively.