Swissep 25 - investment landscape 2025 - Dung Genesia
Short Summary:
Dung Genesia, a Japanese venture capital firm operating in Vietnam for six years, discusses the challenges and strategies for fostering a thriving startup ecosystem. They highlight a "chicken and egg" problem: a lack of high-quality investable startups limits funding, leading to fewer success stories and discouraging entrepreneurs. Genesia's solution involves a two-pronged approach: increasing the conversion rate of startups through stages (pre-seed to Series C) via enhanced support, and increasing the quantity of startups entering the funnel through a new risk-taking investment program (OBBC). This program offers early-stage funding and partnerships with local banks for working capital loans. The presentation concludes with suggestions for broader ecosystem improvement, including increased risk capital, regulatory framework enhancements, and improved knowledge sharing.
Detailed Summary:
The presentation can be broken down into the following sections:
1. Introduction and Genesia's Background: Dung Genesia introduces themselves as a Japanese venture capital firm with a six-year presence in Vietnam. They highlight the country's attractive investment landscape driven by GDP growth, a growing middle-income population, digital economy potential, and government support. They mention their investment strategy (primarily pre-seed to Series A, with potential for up to $4 million total investment) and their startup hub, Obim City.
2. The "Chicken and Egg" Problem: Genesia identifies a significant challenge in the Vietnamese startup ecosystem: a negative feedback loop where a lack of high-quality investable startups leads to limited funding, fewer success stories, and ultimately, less motivation for entrepreneurs. This creates a "Zero Sum game" for the ecosystem.
3. Genesia's Two-Pronged Approach: To break this cycle, Genesia proposes two approaches:
- Increasing Startup Upgrading Conversion Rate: They focus on improving the success rate of startups progressing through funding stages. This involves internal reviews of portfolio companies' fundraising readiness at each stage (pre-seed, Series A, Series B) using a defined template focusing on key success factors. They also provide enhanced value creation support, including team building workshops, business development assistance (leveraging connections in Japan), and the development of a co-creation platform (Obim).
- Increasing the Quantity of Startups: This involves their new OBBC program, a riskier investment strategy with a lower initial investment ticket size ($300,000) and a milestone-based approach. This program also includes partnerships with a local bank to provide working capital loans, even to very early-stage companies. The selection criteria prioritize entrepreneurs with relevant experience and "skin in the game."
4. Suggestions for Broader Ecosystem Improvement: Genesia calls for collaborative action from various stakeholders (VCs, accelerators, incubators, government) to further improve the ecosystem. Key suggestions include:
- Increasing risk capital through government incentives and fund-of-funds schemes.
- Enhancing the regulatory framework, particularly exploring alternative IPO pathways for startups.
- Improving support infrastructure, including legal and financial advisory services, mentorship networks, and knowledge transfer programs. The speaker emphasizes the importance of knowledge sharing and celebrating successes (and failures) to learn and improve. They mention their own blog as an example of proactive knowledge sharing.
The presentation heavily emphasizes the need for a collaborative effort to overcome the challenges and create a more robust and sustainable startup ecosystem in Vietnam. The speaker repeatedly stresses the importance of risk-taking, proactive support, and open knowledge sharing amongst all stakeholders.