Funding Societies, a Singapore-based digital finance platform, has launched in Vietnam today. This is Funding Societies 5th Asian market. Funding Societies provides smaller firms with access to capital with a credit marketplace. To date, Funding Societies has originated S$3.16 billion with just a 1.26% default rate.
The company points to data from Vietnam’s Ministry of Planning and Investment indicating that 98% of operating businesses in the country in 2020 are SMEs, employing more than 5.6 million workers. These firms account for more than US$241 billion or 40% of Vietnam’s gross domestic product (GDP). Access to capital remains one of the greatest obstacles to the growth of Vietnamese SMEs and Funding Societies wants to fill this void.
Since its soft launch in Vietnam in December 2021, Funding Societies reports that it has already achieved over US$20 million in disbursements, and it is looking to increase this to US$90 million this year.
Earlier this year, Vietnamese tech firm VNG Corporation invested US$22.5 million in Funding Societies as part of the company’s US$294 million series C+ round. VNG is expectd to help Funding Societies to adapt to the local market by providing solutions tailored to the unique needs of Vietnamese businesses.
Kelvin Teo, co-founder and Group CEO of Funding Societies | Modalku commented:
“Since our inception in 2015, our vision is to uplift societies in Southeast Asia. Hence, Vietnam has always been part of our roadmap. This is an opportune time as we ride out of COVID-19, build a solid team with local FinTech veteran Ryan Galloway, and secure investment from tech giant VNG. We believe that Vietnam will be one of our largest markets given its enormous potential.”
Ryan Galloway, Country Director of Funding Societies Vietnam, added:
“Vietnam SMEs don’t have the same access to venture and early-stage capital markets as other Southeast Asian markets, but the Vietnam market is equally as competitive, so Vietnamese entrepreneurs are trained to do more with less. We see lots of opportunity in Vietnam and we’re excited to support the country’s burgeoning SME landscape as we continue to serve the needs of millions of SMEs across Southeast Asia.”
Kelly Wong, VNG’s Vice President of Game Entertainment and Lead Game Business said their investment in Funding Societies is aligned around creating opportunities for SMEs and to support their growth and development.
Along with Vietnam, Funding Society provides services in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia (where it is known as Modalku
Funding Societies says it will continue to deepen its presence in the five countries it operates in, with new financing and neo-banking products.