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On the afternoon of April 17, the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee (UBND) in collaboration with the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Science and Technology (KH&CN) launched the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund. The event marks the city’s activation of a specialized financial tool designed to support and accompany startup and technology firms from incubation to growth. Attendees included the city’s party secretary Trần Lưu Quang and Deputy Chairman of the People’s Committee Nguyễn Mạnh Cường, along with leaders from various departments and enterprises. The fund operates as a joint-stock company under the Enterprise Law, with the full name Ho Chi Minh City Venture Investment Joint Stock Company, abbreviated HCM, VIF, JSC. The fund aims to ensure transparency and autonomy in governance and investment decisions. With an initial charter capital of 500 billion dong, 40 percent funded by the city budget (200 billion) and the remaining 300 billion raised from private investors, corporations, and reputable financial institutions. The governance model separates state ownership, investor ownership, and professional management in line with international practice. Under the new approach, independent experts will manage and evaluate investments based on market potential and profitability, rather than rigid procedures, and the fund will accompany startups from finance to strategy, helping them access professional capital. Notably, a controlled risk tolerance mechanism sets an overall risk cap of up to 50 percent of the state’s stake per investment cycle. Portfolio-based assessment will determine investment performance rather than individual projects, allowing the state to act as seed capital and take calculated risks. In addition, the liability waiver mechanism serves as a legal shield, enabling fund managers to venture with confidence and removing psychological barriers for staff when working with startups, while protecting them from market risks if they follow transparent processes. The fund envisions a strategic path toward a total capital of 5 trillion dong by 2035, focusing on core technologies such as artificial intelligence, semiconductors, biotechnology, renewable energy, and robotics, and investing in 50 to 150 innovative startups to attract international venture capital.
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