At the Consumer Electronics Show 2022 (CES 2022), billionaire Pham Nhat Vuong's VinFast officially announced that it will become an electric car manufacturer by the end of 2022. The firm introduced five electric car models, designed by an Italian leading car design company. The vehicles are equipped with the most modern, smart technologies and features.

As part of its electric vehicle development strategy, VinFast kicked off last December the construction of the VinES battery factory in Vung Ang economic zone (Ha Tinh province) to ensure the supply of lithium batteries for electric vehicles.

Mr. Vuong's Vingroup focuses on the technology industry as its key business, followed by trade and services. Real estate is still its mainstay but not the focus of future breakthroughs.

In early 2022, the T&T Group of Mr. Do Quang Hien and his Korean partner started building a 2.3 billion USD gas power project in the central province of Quang Tri, with phase-1 capacity of 1,500MW, expected to operate commercially in 2026 - 2027. Hien, Chairman and General Director of T&T Group, said the project will provide the national electricity system with about 8.25 billion kWh/year.

In late 2021, Thaco Group of billionaire Tran Ba Duong held a ceremony to export 15,500 semi-trailers to the US market, after successfully exporting Kia passenger cars to Myanmar and Thailand, buses to Philippines, Thailand and Singapore and trucks to Cambodia.

Thaco has also provided OEM components for domestic automobile manufacturers such as Toyota, Isuzu, Hyundai, Piaggio and processed industrial and civil products for partners such as General Electric, Doosan, Makitech...

The export of semi-trailers to the US is an important event not only for Thaco but also for the mechanical and supporting industries of Vietnam, because this shows the competitiveness of Vietnamese industrial products in the global supply chain.

In a relatively new segment, the Axie Infinity blockchain game project created by a Vietnamese man reached market capitalization of more than 9 billion USD at the end of 2021, entering the top 20 cryptocurrency projects in the world.

Over the years, many Vietnamese corporations have entered the world market and gained achievements. However, in order to increase participation in the global value chain and be able to compete with international businesses, Human Resources will be a decisive factor.

Former Chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) Vu Tien Loc said that technology can be bought, but management and Human Resources are difficult to fill. This is the biggest gap of Vietnamese enterprises and economy.

Expanding the market

Despite being very successful with real estate and tourism businesses, development opportunities of billionaire Pham Nhat Vuong’s Vingroup will be limited if it keeps operating in the domestic market.

To develop a successful electric car company, VinFast plans to raise capital in the world financial market with a valuation of about 50 billion USD. If successful, billionaire Vuong's assets could reach 30 billion USD, placing him in the top 50 richest people in the world.

At a meeting in 2016, Vuong mentioned how this group would invest abroad. He chose VinFast to realize the dream, when the firm introduced its first electric cars at the Los Angeles Auto Show last year. Not only the US, VinFast also aims to enter other large markets such as Canada, the UK, France and the Netherlands. VinFast plans to set up a factory in the US in the second half of 2024.

Hoang Anh Gia Lai Group (HAGL) of businessman Doan Nguyen Duc has recovered and revealed signs of returning to its heyday after 10 years investing in agriculture.

HAGL has developed 10,000 hectares of fruit trees in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. The livestock sector also has developed strongly with hundreds of thousands of pigs and sows.

Mobile World of Mr. Nguyen Duc Tai has entered the regional market with the Bluetronics chain in Cambodia. With 50 stores, Bluetronics has the largest number of stores in this country.

According to Mr. Doan Van Hieu Em, Mobile World General Director, the chain's revenue reached about 500 billion VND by the end of 2021. The group has been successful in Cambodia and will continue its journey to conquer the Southeast Asian market.

Vinamilk has been successful in a number of international markets, including China, and is building a global brand, especially in key regions.

Leading the trend of finding new directions in the international market are FPT and Viettel. These corporations have achieved many successes. FPT aims to become one of the top 50 digital transformation companies in the world. According to FPT President Truong Gia Binh, FPT will focus heavily on strategic directions such as cloud computing (Cloud).

Currently, FPT's digital transformation revenue mainly comes from abroad, of which contracts in the US market are valued at 40-50 million USD per year. It is forecast that FPT's technology revenue and profit will grow by over 20% per year, from both domestic and international markets.

Mr. Nguyen Dang Quang's Masan Group is also gradually asserting its name and position, with a vision by 2025 to be one of the world's 50 most admired companies named by Fortune Magazine. In particular, Masan High-Tech Materials aims to become the number 1 partner of high-tech industries worldwide.

The new directions and strategy of building large, international-sized enterprises are highly appreciated by experts, although some think that there will be many challenges and risks. However, without such assertiveness and boldness, the opportunity to catch up with the world's large corporations will be very difficult. This is a promising path to expand the "pie" of economic benefits for businesses and the whole country.

M. Ha

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