Startup funding in Vietnam shrinks 49% in Q1

Nighttime view of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam / Photo credit: Shutterstock

Vietnamese startups raised a total of US$40.6 million in Q1 2023 – 49% lower compared to the same period in 2022, Tracxn said in its quarterly tech report for the country.

Startup funding activity hit a record-breaking fourth quarter in 2021, but has since been on a decline, the report added. Despite this, the Q1 2023 number is still 40% higher than Q4 2022.

Vietnam’s late-stage startup investments remained flat for three consecutive quarters – which caused a decline in overall volume. Meanwhile, early-stage investments dropped by 23% year-over-year in Q1 2023, with no new unicorn sightings since Q4 2021.

Tracxn said Vietnam’s economy has been going through a “significant transition” amid an uneven Covid-19 recovery and the Russia-Ukraine war.

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All tech funding activity in Q1 2023 happened in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, with the most active investors in that quarter being Touchstone Partners, Resolution Ventures, and UOB.