Managing a US$100 million fund, IDG Ventures Vietnam (IDGVV) is one of the few venture funds for IT investment in Vietnam. The Vietnam Business Forum has an exchange talk with Ms Duong Thu Huong, Manager of Foreign Affairs of IDG Ventures Vietnam, about the activities of the fund in Vietnam.
Could you give a brief introduction of the Fund, challenges and prospects of IDG in Vietnam?
We are an independent partnership making investments on behalf of our limited partner, International Data Group, or IDG, the world’s largest IT media company. Our best business advantage is the easier business environment in Vietnam, especially recent amendments to legal documents related to investment and business. Other advantages are an available human resource, a strong growth of consumer markets and a high growth of internet and mobile phone users. These advantages are the main factors leading to the successes of such venture investment funds as IDG Ventures Vietnam.
Our peculiar difficulties in investment in Vietnam consist of the following: (1) The legal corridor needs further standardising and amending to create favourable conditions for foreign investors in general and venture investors in particular. The legal area needs new regulations or clearer definitions like the regulations on the investment expansion in accordance with the WTO roadmap, clear instructions for Corporate Law and Investment Law, legal frameworks of IT, e-payment, e-signature, e-authentication, etc. (2) The level of the human resources and the capacity of Vietnamese enterprises in approaching new business and investment modes, like on the platforms of internet, telecom and communication.
When Vietnam joins the WTO, both opportunities and challenges will appear. So, how has IDG prepared for its operations and strategies at this time?
The challenge of the WTO is huge, especially the stiff competition against Vietnamese companies. To grasp opportunities generated by the WTO and minimise its risks, IDG Ventures Vietnam focuses its investment in potential companies in Vietnam like digital content providers. It also takes full advantage of the human resource factor of Vietnam to produce made-in-Vietnam IT products capable of competing on the international market. As a global investor, IDG Ventures Vietnam also brings in opportunities for Vietnamese businesses as it links Vietnamese units with successful foreign firms.
With its strength, what is the plan and prospect of IDG set until 2010 when the business community will have 500,000 entities?
The lesson to succeed which we want to share most with the business community is the focus on the human factor. Among hundreds of investment calling projects, the fund is only able to pick up several projects and their differences with the unsuccessful ones are human factors. Any enterprise desiring to reap success in business and take full advantage of international resources, such as venture investment funds, must prove their “entrepreneurship” with bold but meticulous business thoughts and plans, which must prove the competitive advantages of their human factors.
IDG Ventures Vietnam has great expectations for the Vietnamese Government’s target of 500,000 enterprises by 2010, as this is groundwork for an active business environment. Investors will have more chances to sort out the best potential companies to invest in. To help the expanding business community of Vietnam with more options for their development process, IDG Ventures Vietnam will actively boost up the information sharing and community instruction in investment ventures; thus, building giant companies - a momentum to pull up the development of the Vietnamese business community.
Xuan Huy
Vietnamese
