Quang Ninh (VNA) – The nationalinnovative start-up day, Techfest 2019 kicked off on December 4 in Ha Longcity, the northeastern province of Quang Ninh.
Themed'Vietnam: Globalise', Techfest 2019 aims to attract resources, manpower,technology and finance to support Vietnamese start-ups and become a platform toconnect Vietnamese start-up ecosystem with that of the world at large. It hasattracted the participation of about 600 delegates.
Addressing the opening ceremony, Deputy PrimeMinister Vu Duc Dam has urged Vietnamese start-ups to come up with initiatives,make new technology-based products and not be afraid of risks.
“Thesuccess of Vietnamese start-ups not only makes contributions to nationaleconomic development but also blows up spirit among authorities at all levelsand the whole society. If everyone gets ready to come up with new ideas andwork together to turn ideas into practice, success will definitely come to us,”said the Deputy PM.
He highlighted the need to connect in the era of the fourth Industrial Revolutionto narrow the gaps between Vietnam and the world.
According to Chu Ngọc Anh, Minister ofScience and Technology, the Vietnamese start-up ecosystem has been supported bya legal framework including various laws.
In the first 10 months of this year, therewere 29 business transactions attracting a total of more than 750 million USD,with the biggest deal worth up to 300 million USD in fintech, the biggestsuch transaction in Southeast Asia.
Start-up spirit has been spread nationwide. The Vietnamese start-up eco-systemhas grown up with 38 incubators and more than 170 co-working spacesnationwide, while 52 out of 63 provinces and cities have plans and mobilisedresources to support start-ups. There are 61 innovative start-up fundsnationwide, he said.
Techfest 2019 features activities such as astart-up exhibition, technology showcase, matching between investors andstart-ups and start-up contests.
Venture capital investment in Vietnamesestart-ups surged by eight times between 2015 and 2018, said Thach Le Anh, VietnamSilicon Valley Accelerator’s Founder at the Eco-system Summit 2019 held atTechfest the same day.
“The investment in Vietnamese start-ups, which ranks third in Southeast Asiabehind Indonesia and Singapore, has improved in both quality and number ofdeals. This is such a source of pride for Vietnam and also an opportunity forlocalities across the country to develop local start-up eco-systems,” she said.
According to her, Vietnamese start-ups specialise in not only one sector but invarious fields, with the number of start-ups increasing from 400 in 2012 to3,000 in 2018.
However, the definition of angel investors seems to be rather new to the publicin Vietnam. Angel investors who make “silent contributions to the start-upcommunity” might be entrepreneurs, working or retired policy makers who consultstart-ups and invest to help start-ups access markets. In Vietnam, thereis no specific policy to encourage angel investors or any agency in charge ofcertifying angel investors, she said.
“There should be a law on venture capital including regulations related toangel investors,” she said.
To unlock the full potential of Vietnamese start-ups, Anh highlighted theneed for a network of angel investors as well as start-up and venture capitalinvestment centres.
Gibs Song, an investor from the Republic of Korea and a partner of Vietnam SiliconValley Accelerator, said Vietnam’s start-up ecosystem is very active. It isyoung compared to US’s Silicon Valley, as well as the Japanese, RoK and Singaporeanecosystems, but start-ups are very eager, have a lot of desire and are catchingup with the rest of the world very quickly.
“More foreign companies are interested in Vietnamese start-ups. Right now it isnot easy for them to come to Vietnam to settle down, learn the market and findpartners,” he said.
Vietnam can do more to host non-Vietnamesecompanies so they can move to the country more easily. Foreign and Vietnamesecompanies can work together to create a diverse start-up ecosystem, he added./.
Themed'Vietnam: Globalise', Techfest 2019 aims to attract resources, manpower,technology and finance to support Vietnamese start-ups and become a platform toconnect Vietnamese start-up ecosystem with that of the world at large. It hasattracted the participation of about 600 delegates.
Addressing the opening ceremony, Deputy PrimeMinister Vu Duc Dam has urged Vietnamese start-ups to come up with initiatives,make new technology-based products and not be afraid of risks.
“Thesuccess of Vietnamese start-ups not only makes contributions to nationaleconomic development but also blows up spirit among authorities at all levelsand the whole society. If everyone gets ready to come up with new ideas andwork together to turn ideas into practice, success will definitely come to us,”said the Deputy PM.
He highlighted the need to connect in the era of the fourth Industrial Revolutionto narrow the gaps between Vietnam and the world.
According to Chu Ngọc Anh, Minister ofScience and Technology, the Vietnamese start-up ecosystem has been supported bya legal framework including various laws.
In the first 10 months of this year, therewere 29 business transactions attracting a total of more than 750 million USD,with the biggest deal worth up to 300 million USD in fintech, the biggestsuch transaction in Southeast Asia.
Start-up spirit has been spread nationwide. The Vietnamese start-up eco-systemhas grown up with 38 incubators and more than 170 co-working spacesnationwide, while 52 out of 63 provinces and cities have plans and mobilisedresources to support start-ups. There are 61 innovative start-up fundsnationwide, he said.
Techfest 2019 features activities such as astart-up exhibition, technology showcase, matching between investors andstart-ups and start-up contests.
Venture capital investment in Vietnamesestart-ups surged by eight times between 2015 and 2018, said Thach Le Anh, VietnamSilicon Valley Accelerator’s Founder at the Eco-system Summit 2019 held atTechfest the same day.
“The investment in Vietnamese start-ups, which ranks third in Southeast Asiabehind Indonesia and Singapore, has improved in both quality and number ofdeals. This is such a source of pride for Vietnam and also an opportunity forlocalities across the country to develop local start-up eco-systems,” she said.
According to her, Vietnamese start-ups specialise in not only one sector but invarious fields, with the number of start-ups increasing from 400 in 2012 to3,000 in 2018.
However, the definition of angel investors seems to be rather new to the publicin Vietnam. Angel investors who make “silent contributions to the start-upcommunity” might be entrepreneurs, working or retired policy makers who consultstart-ups and invest to help start-ups access markets. In Vietnam, thereis no specific policy to encourage angel investors or any agency in charge ofcertifying angel investors, she said.
“There should be a law on venture capital including regulations related toangel investors,” she said.
To unlock the full potential of Vietnamese start-ups, Anh highlighted theneed for a network of angel investors as well as start-up and venture capitalinvestment centres.
Gibs Song, an investor from the Republic of Korea and a partner of Vietnam SiliconValley Accelerator, said Vietnam’s start-up ecosystem is very active. It isyoung compared to US’s Silicon Valley, as well as the Japanese, RoK and Singaporeanecosystems, but start-ups are very eager, have a lot of desire and are catchingup with the rest of the world very quickly.
“More foreign companies are interested in Vietnamese start-ups. Right now it isnot easy for them to come to Vietnam to settle down, learn the market and findpartners,” he said.
Vietnam can do more to host non-Vietnamesecompanies so they can move to the country more easily. Foreign and Vietnamesecompanies can work together to create a diverse start-up ecosystem, he added./.
VNA
