The real challenge, however, lies in translating this political will into meaningful reforms - bold enough to allow the country’s “leading cranes” in the private sector to truly take off.

As Vietnam seeks stronger economic autonomy, competitiveness, and resilience, empowering its large private firms becomes a foundational strategy to position the country more firmly on the regional and global economic map.

“Leading cranes”: The missing link in Vietnam’s growth engine

After nearly four decades of economic reform, Vietnam’s private sector has proven itself to be a pillar of the national economy.

According to the General Statistics Office, this sector currently contributes about 46% of GDP, generates over 85% of employment, and accounts for 58–60% of total social investment annually.

However, a critical gap remains in the growth landscape: Vietnam still lacks large-scale private corporations capable of leading entire value chains and acting as true “leading cranes.”

While other Asian nations have nurtured regionally influential private conglomerates, most Vietnamese private firms remain small or medium-sized. They continue to face limitations in technology, governance, and supply chain integration.

As a result, growth has remained uneven and the economy’s ability to withstand external shocks is still weak.

A pivotal shift in national development thinking

Resolution 68 marks a significant turning point. For the first time, it recognizes the private sector as one of the most important drivers of the economy.

This reflects a shift from seeing the sector as supplementary to embracing it as a central force for leadership.

Beyond its political significance, Resolution 68 provides an institutional framework to restructure enterprise development policies - particularly for large private firms.

As Vietnam moves toward a growth model centered on productivity, innovation, and deep global integration, placing the private sector in a leadership role becomes a strategic imperative.

Why does Vietnam still lack regionally competitive private conglomerates?

By the end of 2024, Vietnam had nearly 1 million active private enterprises. The number of medium and large firms increased by around 15% compared to the start of the current political term.

Some corporations have begun investing in complex sectors such as infrastructure, energy, electric vehicles, and high technology - gradually asserting their presence.

Still, the number of private companies that can genuinely serve as “leading cranes” remains very limited.

Vietnam had only a few entries in the 2024 Fortune Global 500 list, and their scale and influence pale in comparison with peers in the region.

The gap between potential and performance suggests that the problem lies not only with the enterprises themselves, but also with the policy environment.

Institutional bottlenecks and financing constraints

One of the biggest barriers is institutional - especially the consistency and stability of policy.

Large private firms typically require long-term, large-scale investment. Yet, they often face high legal risks, cumbersome administrative procedures, and heavy compliance costs.

Access to strategic resources also remains limited. Medium- and long-term credit still relies heavily on the banking system, while Vietnam’s capital markets remain underdeveloped and ineffective as funding channels for large-scale projects.

According to the State Bank of Vietnam, credit to the private sector remains largely short-term, which hampers investment in innovation and long-term capacity.

Removing institutional bottlenecks to help “leading cranes” soar

Resolution 68 clearly calls for the removal of institutional obstacles holding back private-sector development.

The focus lies in reforming the investment and business environment - ensuring property rights, the freedom to do business, and substantive equality across all economic sectors.

Significantly, the resolution emphasizes building a cohort of large private enterprises with competitive capacity at the regional and global levels.

This requires highly targeted policy support - not broad or unfocused incentives.

Support should center on technological capability, governance, innovation, and value chain integration.

The biggest challenge lies in implementation

Unless backed by concrete action plans, legal reform, and resource allocation, the spirit of Resolution 68 will struggle to drive meaningful change.

International experience shows that the emergence of large private conglomerates is often closely tied to proactive state involvement - from infrastructure investment and capital market development to R&D support and export market expansion.

These are the pillars that Vietnam must strengthen in the coming period.

Nguyen Van Loc & Pham Ngoc Huong Quynh
University of Economics, Vietnam National University, Hanoi