Tag: vietnam

Singapore — Entravision MediaDonuts, a digital marketing performance and branding solutions platform in Asia-Pacific, has signed a partnership agreement with Carousell Media Group for Carousell in the Philippines and Cho Tot in Vietnam, as their official reseller.

Via the collaboration, brands can advertise on premium real estate in Carousell’s e-commerce space while leveraging its advanced contextual and audience targeting capabilities. Carousell Media Group has a database of 58 million registered users across Greater Southeast Asia through their different platforms namely Carousell, Mudah.my, Cho Tot, OneKyat, Ox Street, and Refash. Additionally, millennials comprise 70% of this targeted group of highly engaged consumers with buying intent.

Moreover, advertisers can leverage Connect, Carousell Media Group’s off-platform solution, to engage consumers across the open internet through millions of other publishers across mobile and web app inventories. Powered by The Trade Desk technology, an independent DSP, this feature allows brands to target and retarget users throughout their buying journey.

JJ Eastwood, MD of Carousell Media Group, said, “As we scale our media offering in the Philippines, we are excited to partner with Entravision MediaDonuts to connect advertisers with passionate communities and sustainability-conscious shoppers.”

Meanwhile, Pieter-Jan de Kroon, CEO of Entravision MediaDonuts, noted, “The Philippine internet economy has reached US$17b, and is expected to grow to US$40b by 2025. Entravision MediaDonuts is in the Philippines to provide on-ground support to all marketers expecting the best-in-class solutions for their digital media campaigns.”

On the partnership with Carousell Media Group, de Kroon shared, “We are very excited to represent Carousell in the Philippines, which will help advertisers achieve superior performance at scale. The digital media landscape is evolving fast in the Philippines and we’re seeing a very interesting opportunity, especially in the e-commerce space.”

Vietnam – GroupM, a WPP media investment group, has elevated media agency veteran Nitin Kumar to the role of chief investment officer at GroupM Vietnam. Kumar will be based in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam and will assume the position on 1st July 2022, taking over the reins previously held by Huyen Trinh.

Formerly the Principal Partner of Products at GroupM Indonesia, Kumar has spent more than one and a half decades immersed in the media and marketing industry. From client leadership to trading, investment, general management and most recently, products development, Nitin accumulated a wealth of experience across key remits at the world’s biggest media investment company including significant tenures at GroupM agencies – Wavemaker and Mediacom.

Nitin has worked with a star-studded roster of clients including P&G, Heinz, Coca-Cola, Wipro, Airtel, Del Monte and many other brands across India, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

Nitin will report to both Himanshu Shekhar, CEO of GroupM Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam as well as Anita Munro, GroupM’s chief investment officer for Southeast and North Asia, who also chairs the APAC Investment Committee.

Commenting on his appointment, Kumar said, “I am thrilled to join GroupM Vietnam whose roster of local and global advertisers makes for an eyewatering portfolio. Together with my investment team, I look forward to leaning into our local and regional partners to create differentiated and market-leading advantage for brands. We will help our clients unlock even more premium content, data, and first-look rights as well as offer beta testing and priority access to premium inventories.”

Himanshu Shekhar, CEO of GroupM Indonesia, Thailand & Vietnam, shared, “Nitin’s all-round expertise in media strategy, planning, negotiations, trading and product development makes him a highly valuable leader to drive our investment vision and roadmap for Vietnam. This is one of the fastest-growing markets in Southeast Asia with latent potential, and I’m confident that with Nitin’s entrepreneurial skills and commercial acumen, he will be able to lead the team to extract maximum value for our clients in a rapidly evolving digital media ecosystem.”

Meanwhile, Anita Munro, chair of GroupM’s APAC Investment Committee, said, “GroupM Vietnam has built a strong investment legacy that will be further advanced with Nitin at the helm. As he focuses on enhancing the partnerships in-market and augmenting our investment capabilities across all channels, our clients will be able to enjoy far-reaching value.”

Munro added, “In partnership with our regional investment team, Nitin will lead the delivery of GroupM’s Responsible Investment Framework in Vietnam that entails building a diverse, sustainable and high-quality media ecosystem that our clients can invest in confidently now and in future.”

Vietnam – Amazon has announced the return of its annual Prime Day event this 12 and 13 of July, offering Prime members various choices of must-have products at big deals and promotions. This year, sellers across the globe, including those from Vietnam, will be able to sell their products to more countries during the event, as the 48-hour deals event kicks off on 12 July at midnight PDT (3 a.m. EDT) and runs through 13 July for Prime members in Australia, Japan, Singapore, and other countries. 

Prime Day has become a critical opportunity for third-party sellers around the world, including Vietnamese selling partners, to grow their businesses and build global brands. 

Since the announcement of Prime Day 2022 return, hundreds of Vietnamese sellers have registered to join the campaign, and this number continues to increase. In particular, Vietnamese sellers from home decor, kitchen dining, gifting and beauty categories have shown their eagerness and good preparation to capture this selling opportunity with various deal submissions.

Through the event, customers will be able to shop for products from top national brands and small and medium-sized businesses across every category. New deals from fashion and electronics to toys and home—will go live throughout Prime Day, offering savings on products across categories, including from ‘Customer’s Most Loved’, ‘Internet Famous’, and a selection of ‘Climate Pledge Friendly’ products.

Gijae Seong, head of Amazon Global Selling Vietnam, said, “With the Vietnamese local businesses and household brands our members love and trust, we’re excited to offer our best Prime Day deals yet to even more customers around the world.” 

Seong added, “This year, we’re not only making it simple for members to find the best deals, but also trying to provide our selling partners with more features to benefit and maximise their selling.”

Beyond the expansion of the participating countries, sellers can get more benefits from new features designed to help members make the most of their shopping ahead of time. For example, Prime members can simplify their hunt for deals by subscribing to receive deal alert notifications related to their recent Amazon searches and recently viewed items. 

Besides, starting 21 June, busy Prime members can add products to their Wish List, Cart, or Save for Later, and Alexa can notify them up to 24 hours in advance of an eligible deal going live on those items. Members can then ask Alexa to remind them about the deal when it’s live, or even order it on their behalf.

Vietnam – Cho Tot, an online classified marketplace in Vietnam, has launched a ‘Protected Payment’ feature to enhance the safety and convenience of buying and selling secondhand items. The company also has a solid plan to reshape the future of recommerce via building a comprehensive ecosystem.

Cho Tot is a part of the Carousell Group, a classifieds marketplace group in Greater Southeast Asia. Since launching in Vietnam in 2013, Cho Tot has become a well-known recommerce platform with more than 10 million unique monthly users and more than 1 million used items listed every month. Unlike the traditional consumption cycle, which comprises buying new items and then discarding them, Carousell and Cho Tot enable consumers to buy and sell used items, extending the life cycle of these items. Reinforcing the circular economy helps the community take steps together towards fulfilling the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

In order to increase trust in transacting on secondhand items, Cho Tot’s ‘Protected Payment’ feature is an escrow payment system that provides assurance to users by holding payment until a transaction is verified as successful by both buyer and seller. Supported by third-party payment platforms—mobile e-wallet platform MoMo and intermediary payment service Payoo, as well as on-demand logistics firm Ahamove—transactions via this method are recorded and ensured under Cho Tot’s protection policy. Buyers will be refunded in full if they do not receive items or if the items do not match the description. In addition, Cho Tot will assist in mediating disputes between buyers and sellers in cases of dispute, based on platform policy, to ensure transparency and the rights of both parties. 

Additionally, Cho Tot users can now experience much more convenience when buying and selling used items. Previously, transactions of used items would include multiple steps from contacting the seller, bargaining, making an appointment, verifying items, to making payment. Now, buyers only need to click ‘Buy Now’ and make payment, and the item will be shipped to their address as seamlessly as buying a brand new item on an e-commerce site. 

On the recommerce growth strategy, Hoang Thi Minh Ngoc, chief growth officer of Cho Tot, said, “With the feature of ‘Protected Payment’, we are reshaping the experience of buying and selling used goods to be safer and more convenient. We are planning to develop a comprehensive ecosystem for recommerce via working with strategic partners providing inspection, authentication, warranty and finance solutions; combining online platform and offline services to enhance the user experience for both buyers and sellers.

“In addition, Cho Tot also partners with organisations advocating for circular economy and sustainable development to encourage consumers to prioritize used items as their first choice, moving towards sustainable consumption,” Hoang adds.

On the partnership with Cho Tot to enhance the buying and selling experience of used items, Nguyen Manh Tuong, vice chairman and CEO of MoMo, shared, “We are proud to provide a secure payment solution and secure account for this pioneering feature of Cho Tot. MoMo believes that this partnership will help solve the ‘bottleneck’ for recommerce in Vietnam, remove barriers, and provide an outstanding experience in buying and selling secondhand.” 

Meanwhile, Quek Siu Rui, co-founder and CEO of Carousell, commented, “During the past 10 years, we have tirelessly made efforts to inspire people all over the world to start selling and buying secondhand items. Climate change and over-consumption have made us realise more than ever the importance and relevance of our mission.” 

Rui added, “With the introduction of ‘Protected Payment’ on Cho Tot, we are prioritising a safer, more reliable and more convenient experience in selling and buying secondhand items as the core focus of our growth strategy, directing towards serving the various demands of tens of millions of users in Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Across these countries, Vietnam is our strategic market due to its largest user base and significant growth rate. We’re doubling down on our support for the Cho Tot team to accelerate growth organically, and we’d be keen to explore inorganic options too.” 

Vietnam – In Vietnam, linear advertising still accounts for 62% of the country’s advertising budgets, according to data from Mediabrands’ MAGNA.

According to the report, this year’s advertising revenues in Vietnam are increasing by 5% higher than anticipated due to the pre-COVID situation, which has caused pullbacks in advertising activity since 2021.

Meanwhile, TV advertising revenues are still a huge portion of overall ad budgets in Vietnam. Even though television ad spending is decreasing by -4% it still represents 58% of the total budget.

In other mediums, print ad sales continued to decline this year by -3%, and will continue by -4% in 2023, representing just 5% of total advertiser budgets. Furthermore, spending on print will represent just 70% of the pre-COVID total in 2019 by the end of this year 2022.

Lastly, as the economy recovers from the COVID outbreak in 2021, out-of-home (OOH) expenditure is expected to increase by 20% this year.

For digital advertising, the revenue is increasing by +22% and represents 38% of total advertiser budgets. Digital spending is led by social media advertising, which will increase by +36% and represent 48% of total digital advertising budgets. By format, mobile +30%, video +15%, and search +13% are leading growth.

According to the estimate, Vietnam’s advertising revenue will bring the market to VND 32.8 trillion ($1.5 billion). On a real GDP basis, Vietnam’s economy is expected to grow by 6.0%. Worldwide, media owners’ ad income will rise by over 9.2% this year, reaching around US$828 billion, or approximately 32% above the pre-COVID level of 2019. In addition, advertising revenues in the Asia-Pacific region are expected to rise by more than 7% to US$273 billion, or 35% higher than they were before COVID, thanks to an increase of over 12% in digital advertising.

Vietnam – Amazon’s selling program, Amazon Global Selling, in Vietnam has partnered with government organizations in the country, namely the Vietnam E-commerce and Digital Economy Agency (iDEA) and the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) to collaborate on an initiative that would support the development of cross-border e-commerce talents for Vietnam in 5 years.

Called the ‘Cross-border E-commerce: the Breakthrough Era’, the initiative is aimed to improve local businesses’ ability to unlock opportunities with export through e-commerce. 

“With this MoU, IDEA & Amazon Global Selling Vietnam share the same vision and strategy to support local SMEs export through e-commerce. 10,000 Vietnamese businesses are expected to join our “Cross-border E-commerce: the Breakthrough Era” initiative in which small and medium enterprises can arm themselves with knowledge, information, resources, and connections to sustainably expand their business globally,” said Gijae Seong, head of Amazon Global Selling Vietnam.

The 5-year program will conduct both online & offline training boot camps across Vietnam. Vietnamese entrepreneurs and youngsters who join will be trained with more than 20 diversified courses such as business opportunities from cross-border e-commerce, market research, product selection and listing, brand registration and protection, and guidance on how to sell on Amazon. 

iDEA – MOIT will support Amazon Global Selling Vietnam in implementing the plan by distributing the program information to Vietnamese businesses, local authorities and business associations across the country. With this mutual effort, the program set the target of supporting the development of cross-border e-commerce talents for 10000 businesses from 2022 to 2026.

Đặng Hoàng Hải, director-general of Vietnam eCommerce and Digital Economy Agency, commented, “IDEA’s mission is accelerating the development of Vietnam’s e-commerce and digital economy. To achieve this long-term goal, we believe the key is to equip Vietnamese businesses and communities with updated knowledge about policies and skills in e-commerce and digital economy application.”

“Cross-border e-commerce: the Breakthrough Era” initiative from Amazon, acknowledged by MoIT in terms of content, is a tailor-made program with dedicated training agenda, dynamic schemes approach which align with our direction to support enterprises to improve their digital capabilities and participate in digital economy activities. We will work closely with Amazon Global Selling Vietnam to prepare for local businesses to capture the global opportunity through e-commerce in these 5 years,” added Đặng Hoàng Hải. 

In 2022, the program is planned to roll out in Hanoi, HCMC, Danang, and other cities across Vietnam.

Alongside the launch of the program, Amazon has also concurrently released its special report on Vietnam’s e-commerce export opportunity. Through its findings, the report noted that if ‘B2C e-commerce’ were an export category, it could be the fifth-largest export category in Vietnam in five years. 

Vietnam – Vietnamese MSMEs with B2C e-commerce export value are forecast to grow from US$3.3b in 2021 to US$11.1b by 2026, according to a report by the e-commerce exports program Amazon Global Selling.

The newly released report found that if ‘B2C e-commerce’ were an export category, it could be the fifth-largest export category in Vietnam in five years. It also discovered that 88% of surveyed MSMEs in the country feel that e-commerce is critical for their ability to export, while some of them anticipated greater sales growth prospects overseas with 42% more than in their home country with 11%. 

Moreover, the survey has revealed that key challenges can be narrowed down to three categories, namely barriers in cost, regulation, and information and capabilities.

Meanwhile, more than 80% of surveyed local MSMEs yet admitted that they lack information on relevant regulations overseas, while 85% believe they lack the ability to compete with other sellers globally, and 81% admitted that they are unsure of foreign consumers’ demands and preferences. 

Gijae Seong, Amazon Global Selling’s head for Vietnam, noted, “Local businesses of any size can benefit from the report on Vietnam e-commerce export trends to update about export potential, the perspective of local MSMEs, and best practices to achieve that potential.”

Vietnam – Houze, a proptech startup in Vietnam that offers a fully integrated real estate ecosystem for agents and customers through its offline-to-online platform, has raised a $2m of funding led by DKRA Group, giving the company resources to continue expanding its services and growing its team to meet the demand in Vietnam and beyond.

Houze has created a multi-platform for both real-estate agents and home-buyers, offering integrated services from the transaction, management, investment, and financing options. It features services such as Houze Agent (digital brokerage), Houze Commerce (property management platform under SaaS), and Houze Invest (Fintech resulted from real estate), amongst others. All these services are integrated and linked in Houze, providing a seamless experience for its users, and managing to combine the elements into one unique platform. 

The newly secured funding will be used in completing the leadership team, as well as enhancing the core products. In addition, it will be used for the strategic partnership with Vietnam’s real estate service brand DKRA Group, which creates the advantage of exclusive inventories and enhances battlefield experience in the real estate industry in the country

Houze said that it is also in the process of closing an additional fund with venture capital to launch new products such as Houze Portal, Houze Super App, and Houze Finance.

Pham Lam, Houze’s founder, said, “Technology will disrupt geographical limitations and human capital, closing the gap between agents and home-buyers and professionalise the brokerage community.”

Vietnam – Ancient8, a blockchain gaming guild in Vietnam, has closed a US$6m private round of financing led by Makers Fund and C² Ventures, with participation from existing and new investors Pantera Capital, 6th Man Ventures, and IOSG Ventures, amongst others. This round of financing brings Ancient8’s total capital raised to US$10m.

Ancient8 helps GameFi studios reach passionate gamers and run web3-native targeted advertising through its GameFi Identity product and launchpads. Gamers and crypto communities will soon be able to create GameFi identity profiles to track and showcase their achievements in Web3, discover high-quality blockchain games, and access guild scholarships and blockchain education more effectively.

With this round of financing, Ancient8 will be accelerating the development of the infrastructure for GameFi and the Metaverse by building its next-generation software products, community, and guild. It is also developing a number of software products designed to underpin the future of blockchain-based game development. 

In the coming months, Ancient8 will be launching its GameFi Identity product and a pair of GameFi Token and NFT Launchpads designed to enhance the go-to-market strategy of Web3 games. These products will help the platform connect top blockchain games with its deeply engaged global community of GameFi enthusiasts and enable users to enjoy the most intuitive experience possible in the world of Web3.

Howard Xu, Ancient8’s co-founder, noted that they will continue to expand their product offerings, partner with more innovative projects and games, and grow their influence and reach with a large global community.

“As cultivators of the first native generation of Metaverse citizens, we are excited to be building the foundational infrastructure that will drive mainstream GameFi adoption,” said Xu.

Vietnam – The Vietnam Maritime Commercial Joint Stock Bank (MSB) has tapped cloud banking platform Temenos to modernise its core banking system. Through the partnership, MSB’s multiple homegrown and legacy systems will be replaced with Temenos’ open platform for composable banking.

Through Temenos core banking solutions for retail and corporate banking, including analytics, payments and data lake capabilities, MSB can bring innovative new products to market much faster at a significantly lower cost. It can also leverage the power of big data to deliver hyper-personalised customer experiences. This will provide the bank a competitive edge to keep pace with the current and future banking needs of Vietnam’s largely young and increasingly affluent population.

Nguyen Hoang Linh, CEO of MSB, said, “MSB aims to become a universal bank for the digital 4.0 era on a par with the best and biggest international banks. Revamping our technology infrastructure with Temenos’ open platform will accelerate digitization and increase automation.” 

He added, “Such efforts will help to significantly reduce costs, improve customer experience and heighten the bank’s competitive advantage. This transformation with Temenos is already well underway, helping MSB meet ever-changing retail and corporate customer demands in a highly competitive market.”

Meanwhile, David Becker, managing director for APAC at Temenos, commented, “MSB has an ambitious five-year digital roadmap, transforming the bank for the open, digital era. We are proud to support and partner with the bank on this journey. Temenos has proven technology and local expertise in Vietnam with more than 20 banking clients across retail, corporate and wealth sectors. With our deep regional expertise and open platform architecture, MSB is well-positioned to capture the opportunities brought about by Vietnam’s digital banking boom.”

Temenos has been previously tapped by local bank Saigon-Hanoi Bank in order to accelerate the bank’s digital transformation.