Vietnam Ramps Up as New Epicenter of Asia's Economic Growth: Vietnam Venture Summit

Nation on strong momentum of IPOs, demonstrating resilience to global headwinds

HANOI, Vietnam, Oct. 30, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Vietnam Venture Summit 2023, hosted by Vietnam's Ministry of Planning and Investment and co-organized by Vietnam National Innovation Center (NIC) and Golden Gate Ventures, a venture capital fund in Southeast Asia (SEA) founded by Silicon Valley natives, kicked off today with an international cast of over 1,000 business leaders and investors, all eyeing Vietnam's rapid rise as a global economic powerhouse.

Themed "Innovating Through Adversity: Strategies for a Transformative Vietnam", the fifth edition of this annual summit tackled the question of Vietnam's future as an investment hub in 2024.

Despite the unpredictability of 2023, Vietnam's Ministry of Planning and Investment reported that the country attracted close to US$20.21 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) in the first nine months of 2023, up 7.7 per cent over the same period last year^[1].

"Vietnam's economic expansion has been underpinned by strong international trade relations that we have continued to reaffirm through ongoing efforts to improve the ease of investment into Vietnam and the creation of ecosystems that support innovation and digitisation. Policy and partnership are key to how we have stayed on track for our National Master Plan for 2021 to 2030," said Tran Duy Dong, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment, Vietnam.

"2023 has been an important year for demonstrating to the world that Vietnam's economic growth is built on strong fundamentals. The transformative strategies we have invested in allow us to write our own success story: one that is built on driving innovation domestically and internationally," said Vu Quoc Huy, General Director, Vietnam National Innovation Center (NIC).

As part of the Summit, NIC and Golden Gate Ventures also launched a report outlining the country's growth trajectory. "Road to Greatness: Rewriting Vietnam's Growth Playbook" (https://vvs.news/roadtogreatness)  pulls back the curtain on Vietnam's economic resiliency and examines what is under the hood of Vietnam's growth in the next few years. The Playbook set the stage for the Summit, which included leaders of Vietnamese conglomerates like VNG and VinBrain of the VinGroup fame; Vietnamese startup founders across fintech, healthtech and AI; global investment firms; global stock exchanges, notably the New York Stock Exchange; and global organisations like the World Bank and Tony Blair Institute. 

Vietnam's Transformative Playbook: Building Economic Resilience

Unlike many other growth markets around the world and particularly in Asia, Vietnam has written its own playbook for success, capitalising on both a long-term view of growth and an agility to move with the changing economic environment to create a resilience that has withstood the challenges of 2023.

Since 2018, global manufacturers have increasingly shifted production to Vietnam due to escalating global politics, with the momentum building across 2021 all through 2023^[2]. This was buoyed by Vietnam's focus on creating an increasingly supportive business environment, its well-educated workforce, low labor cost and favorable global trade agreements. This five-year track record has built a particular resiliency in Vietnam's economy, which has positively positioned Vietnam as the natural answer to emerging global supply chain issues. As the global supply chain shift continues with manufacturing as a key driver, SEA will be the standout winner, with Vietnam leading its neighbors.

2023 has also marked a new phase in Vietnam's position as a global economic powerhouse as it strengthened strategic global partnerships with Israel, China, the Philippines and Singapore. Most recently, it elevated its relations with the United States to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, marking a new era of enhanced bilateral co-operation. Taken in totality, these trade agreements create a long-term runway for Vietnam not only as a leading manufacturing hub but as a center for high-value foreign direct investment.

"In a year that has proven challenging for most economies, Vietnam has shifted its economic development into high gear, cementing itself as the new epicenter of Asia's growth. With a firm hold on the global supply chain, continued investment from multi-nationals, and a thriving startup ecosystem that is feeding the world's appetite for innovation, Vietnam finds itself in a unique position of writing a new playbook for growth that other markets will follow," said Vinnie Lauria, Founding Partner at Golden Gate Ventures.     

Ramping Up to a Year of Listings

A testament to Vietnam's steady rise as an economic power is the country's biggest line-up of international listings. On the heels of the international listings of Vinfast and Society Pass in 2023, the next 18 months will be dominated by anticipated listings of VNG, TIKI and The CrownX.

"Vietnam has swiftly risen to prominence in Asia and continues to be a key area of focus for the NYSE,"said Delano Musafer, Head of APAC Capital Markets, New York Stock Exchange. "I am excited by the number of Vietnamese companies showcasing continued innovation, growth and scalability."

Vietnam's Top 5 Sectors to Watch

Looking ahead, five key sectors are predicted to dominate Vietnam's growth, according to the joint report by NIC and Golden Gate Ventures^[3]: healthtech, fintech, tech-enabled logistics, green economy and edtech. Healthcare spending per capita in Vietnam has tripled over the last five years with the rising consumer class and influx of expatriates into the country. The transaction value of the fintech sector is set to grow at an aggressive 15 per cent CAGR over the next four years to address 70 per cent of the population that still remains unbanked. Meanwhile, in the tech-enabled logistics segment, asset-light models have become the game-changer. On the green economy front, Vietnam is leading Southeast Asia's clean energy drive with wind and solar power innovations, while edtech is a natural growth sector with the increased attention that Vietnam has gained as an investment hub.

Taking the spotlight during the Summit, these five sectors together create an ecosystem of digital innovation that is aligned to the country's ambitions to be a developed nation by 2050, as well as the global appetite for innovation.

"The Vietnam Venture Summit is an open, dynamic platform for the business leaders in Vietnam, the Vietnamese Government and the international community to shape how we can advance international trade and innovation together through the right combination of partnership and policy," added Tran Duy Dong, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment, Vietnam. 

Note:

As part of Vietnam Venture Summit 2023, 30 international and Vietnamese ecosystem players together with Golden Gate Ventures committed to accelerate Vietnam's 2030 ambitions at the Vietnam Venture Summit.

Ecosystem players supporting Vietnam's 2030 ambitions

Note: The following is the link to download a copy of the report "Road to Greatness: Rewriting Vietnam's Growth Playbook. https://vvs.news/roadtogreatness  

About Golden Gate Ventures

Golden Gate Ventures is a global venture capital firm powering technology and innovation from Southeast Asia. Founded in 2011, Golden Gate Ventures combines the knowledge and experience of Silicon Valley with the passion and dynamism of Southeast Asia. For over a decade we've proudly backed some of the region's most audacious founders and companies behind Southeast Asia's incredible growth story, such as Coda Payments, Carro, Chợ Tốt (Carousell Group), Xendit, Appota, Paper.id, Tititada, Multiplier, Rukita, and Locofy. We empower the audacious. For more information, visit goldengate.vc.

About NIC

The National Innovation Center (NIC) is an agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment with the function of developing innovation and startup ecosystems, contributing to model innovation. growth based on innovation, science and technology, and new business models; support and improve the innovation and digital transformation capacity of enterprises to increase labor productivity and competitiveness of the economy. NIC acts as a leading innovation hub under four main pillars:

• Create an attractive business environment, and a professional workspace to attract leading domestic and international innovative enterprises economically.
• Create, connect, and build an open innovation ecosystem with a focus on innovative businesses and start-ups.
• Research and propose outstanding mechanisms and policies, and experimental legal frameworks (sandboxes) to encourage innovation activities nationwide, ensuring competitiveness in the region and internationally.
• Attract resources, investment funds, and talented human resources to support innovative businesses and start-ups in attracting investment, transferring technology, and commercializing products.