Vietnam-based venture capital firm Do Ventures has reached a $28m first close for its inaugural fund, with contributions from corporate backers Naver, Sea and Woowa Brothers, Vietnam Investment Review reported yesterday.
Internet company Naver, e-commerce and entertainment group Sea and delivery app developer Woowa Brothers were joined as limited partners by Singaporean government-owned VC group Vertex Holdings.
Do Ventures was co-founded by Manh Dung Nguyen (Dzung), who was previously a director at Vietnam and Thailand for internet company CyberAgent’s corporate venturing unit, CyberAgent Capital, and Le Hoang Uyen Vy, formerly a general partner at VC fund ESP Capital.
The fund has a $50m target for its final close and will invest in local business-to-consumer and business-to-business platform developers at seed to series B stage, focusing on sectors such as education, healthcare and social commerce, according to TechCrunch, which cited an email statement by Le.
Le told e27 the final close will likely take place in 2021, contingent on the Covid-19 situation, and that the firm will disclose its first few investments next month.
In addition to funding, Do Ventures will help startups come up with business models, and will use an automated data system to review the performance of portfolio companies in areas including product development, business organisation, logistics and expansion outside Vietnam.
Regarding Do Ventures’ plans, Le was quoted by TechCrunch as saying: “We hope tech startups can enable traditional businesses to digitise faster and better adapt to the new normal.
“For consumers, we hope tech startups can transform customer experience in all aspects of daily life, and bring more accessibility to consumers in remote areas.”
