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Home / Investment / News
Vietnam start-ups need more investment capital
Minh Tam 17:33, 2018/04/29
Investment capital into innovative start-ups in Vietnam has remained limited compared to the region and the world though the value has increased in recent years, experts said.
According to a Topica Founder Institute report, US$291 million was poured into Vietnamese start-ups last year, a year-on-year increase of 42 per cent. Meanwhile, the Southeast Asian region attracted $7.86 billion in start-ups last year, Tech in Asia reported.
 
Start-ups in Vietnam received total investment of US$291 million last year.
Start-ups in Vietnam received total investment of US$291 million last year.
Therefore, the investment value into Vietnamese start-ups accounted for a very small proportion, less than 5 percent, Tu Minh Hieu, a representative from the Department of Market and Sci-Tech Enterprise Development, Ministry of Science and Technology, said during a recent start-up forum.
The number of investment transactions in Vietnam is also increasing, however the number of transactions under $1 million is in the majority, Hieu said.
The amount of investment with capital of over $10 million is small, he said. "The number of merger and acquisition (M&A) deals is very small. No start-up has made an initial public offering (IPO)".
Vu Tien Loc, chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), said that capital for start-ups is very important as every dollar invested in startups can create hundreds of dollars for society.
He added there are also about 50 investment funds with many forms of investment for startups but they are scattered and of small scale. The capital scale at startups is limited because of the nature of the industry. 
"We talk a lot about angel investment funds and venture capital funds, but we must deepen our research into these funds," he said, adding that it is necessary to research more deeply on the investment funds to create supportive mechanisms to help enterprises focus on innovative start-up ideas.
"Capital for start-ups must always be ready, because this is the 'baby bottle' for successful start-ups, therefore we need more ways for this 'baby bottle' to grow," Loc emphasized.
The government has promulgated many regulations and programs to support start-ups, especially innovative start-ups, including Decree 38/2018/ND-CP on innovative start-up investment. 
Trinh Thi Huong from the Enterprise Development Agency under Ministry of Planning and Investment, said that Decree 38 identified and recognized innovative start-up investment activities as a business; identified the legal status of innovative start-up companies and funds.
The decree is expected to provide a legal basis for private investors when jointly contributing capital to establish a creative start-up fund; streamline capital flows for creative start-up activities. 
In addition, Loc also spoke highly on the role of large enterprises as the senior companies will provide funds for start-up investors to carry out social responsibility.
"This is considered one of the goals of developing a start-up community in Vietnam, therefore, large enterprises need to boost action plans and spend for start-up capital," he said.
In addition, the VCCI leader said that the country's entrepreneurial spirit is not inferior compared to the global landscape.
According to a VCCI study of over 60 economies, Vietnam is among the 20 economies that have leading entrepreneurial spirit. However, in terms of the possibility of realizing the ideas of starting a business and introducing a business model, Vietnam is among 20 economies in the second half.
At the forum, to boost start-ups next time, the Permanent Secretariat of the National Start-up Program, the Institute for Enterprise Development Research, and a number of enterprises have signed cooperation deals for startups in 2018-2020. 
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