Silicon Valley's 500 Startups Starts Fund in Growing Vietnam
- Firm's Vietnam fund will invest in as many as 150 companies
- Vietnam's startup culture and strong economy attracts funding
Traffic travels along Tran Phu street illuminated at night in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016. Vietnam's new leadership is starting to take shape after days of behind-the-scenes sparring at a Communist Party congress, with the biggest beneficiary the General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, potentially signaling a more cautious approach to economic reform.
Photographer: Maike Elan/Bloomberg500 Startups is starting a $10 million fund dedicated to Vietnam as the Silicon Valley venture capital firm founded by Dave McClure backs more of the country’s technology startups.
Growing Internet use by its young population, where the number of mobile phonesexceeds the number of residents, provides an attractive bet in the nation that gave rise to the Flappy Bird gaming phenomenon in 2014, said Binh Tran, a partner at 500 Startups. The firm has already backed e-commerce and messaging apps in the country through another fund focused on Southeast Asia.