Digital Biz

The ThinkZone II Fund, with capital of up to $60 million, has been founded by ThinkZone Ventures, which is the largest domestic startup investment fund in Vietnam, with contributions from Vietnamese corporations and entrepreneurs including the IPA Investments Corporation, Phu Thai Holdings, the Stavian Group, and others. The fund will support accelerating the growth of startups to stay ahead of development trends in technology.

The General Department of Vietnam Customs introduced free customs declaration software on January 1 to allow enterprises conducting export and import activities to carry out electronic customs procedures. Over 1,000 users have registered after two months of implementation.

The OpenCommerce Group (OCG) has announced it raised $7 million in a Series A funding round led by VNG with the participation of venture capital fund Do Ventures. OCG provides a barrier-free, cross-border e-commerce platform for retailers of all sizes around the world, especially Vietnamese. It is one of just a few companies in Vietnam capable of creating products that can compete with major international players in the field of cross-border e-commerce.

The Ministry of Information and Communications has established a Steering Committee to promote the research and development of 6G mobile information technology, to be led by Minister Nguyen Manh Hung. The Steering Committee will be responsible for dirkecting research and proposing guidelines, strategies, mechanisms, and policies to relevant authorities, to create a legal corridor and promote the research and development of 6G in the country.

Analysts told the online “Developing a service management policy on the internet and promoting the development of the digital economy in Vietnam” seminar that in order for the digital economy to account for 20 per cent of GDP by 2025, in addition to promoting digital infrastructure development, Vietnam has been perfecting policies relating to digital technology, including legal policies for services on the internet.

VNG, Vietnam’s leading internet and technology company, announced on February 16 a $22.5 million investment in Funding Societies, a digital capital funding platform for Southeast Asian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and which operates in Singapore and Indonesia under the name Modalka. The latter is licensed and registered to operate in four countries and territories in the region and will operate in Vietnam shortly.