Southeast Asian VCs pledge $425m in investments for early-stage startups in Vietnam

Venture capital firms from across Southeast Asia have pledged to collectively invest roughly US$425 million into early-stage startups in Vietnam by 2020, according to a statement.

The 17 companies, which included Monk’s Hill Ventures, 500 Startups, and Golden Gate Ventures, came from Korea, Japan, Singapore, Indonesia, and Vietnam.

Photo credit: Jim 陳

The pledge was made during Vietnam’s first Vietnam Venture Summit, an event that hosted 1,000 delegates from across the country and drew in 150 international investors. It was co-hosted by the country’s Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Science and Technology, and Golden Gate Ventures.

Delegates included startup founders, government officials, local investors, global VCs, and international companies such as Google and Visa.

Vietnam Venture Summit was held on the heels of the escalating US-Chine trade tensions, as Vietnam foresees a shift of manufacturing and foreign direct investment into the country.

According to the statement, multinational conglomerate Samsung now makes the majority of its mobile phones in Vietnam. Chinese acoustics manufacturer Goertek also said that its production of Apple’s Airpods wireless headphones will move to Vietnam due to the ongoing trade war.