Vietnam’s Nexttech Group launches $10m fund for early-stage startups

Digital commerce-focused firm Nexttech Group of Technopreneurs has launched a US$10 million early-stage startup fund called Next100. The new fund has a hybrid model of a venture builder, an ecosystem, and a venture capital firm, which the company claims is the first of its kind in Vietnam.

Photo credit: Nexttech Group

With the slogan “Startup Soulmate,” Next100 will not only provide capital but also support Vietnamese founders in solving various hurdles during a startup’s early phase, according to a statement.

Currently, Next100 is looking at potential investments in ecommerce, edtech, travel tech, and AI. “However, we don’t limit ourselves. The fund’s taste is broad and we’re open for ideas from any sector that can be tech-enabled and/or digitized to bring added value to consumers,” Nexttech told Tech in Asia.

“Vietnamese startups are Next100’s priority, but we do take into consideration Southeast Asian startups if they have sound ideas and potential to launch in Vietnam,” the company added.

Through Next100, Nexttech will help founders discover a startup’s “point of impact” or the right business strategy that is in line with the startup’s core capabilities. The company said the fund will invest seed rounds of US$100,000 to US$1 million and coach founders to raise further rounds as they scale.

Startups can also access Nexttech’s ecosystem of close to 20 platforms and over 10 million customers to help with market penetration and expansion in Southeast Asia.

For potential investments, the fund said it considers a founding team’s core competencies with an out-of-the-box creative mindset, a deep understanding of the startup’s chosen sector, and a scalable business idea.

Nexttech’s most recent investments include peer-to-peer lending platform VayMuon, on-demand delivery and concierge services provider HeyU, and tech academy Teky.