Mekong Capital

Mekong Capital, a Vietnam-focused Cayman Island based private equity firm founded by Chris Freund,^[1] formerly of Templeton Asset Management,^[2] has offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.^[3] One of the first private equity firms to engage Vietnam, Mekong Capital established itself shortly after the U.S~Vietnam trade embargo was lifted in 2001, and has completed over 20 private equity investments in Vietnam through 3 funds with approximately 40 full-time employees.^[4]

Some of Mekong Capital's well known investments include:

• The Gioi Di Dong (MobileWorld)^[5] - Vietnam's largest mobile phone retail chain, with over 200 stores nationwide, and more than 18% market share nationwide;
• Golden Gate - A fast-growing restaurant operator, with more than 32 restaurants within 3 brand concepts: Ashima, Kichi Kichi and Sumo;
• Vietnam Australia International Schools (VAS)^[6] - One of the largest K-12 private school chains in Vietnam, with 14 campuses for the 2010/2011 school year;
• DigiWorld^[7] - one of the largest IT distribution companies in Vietnam, representing brands such as Dell, Acer, HP, Toshiba, Samsung, Gateway, Lexmark, Logitech and others;
• MK Smart^[8] - Vietnam's largest card manufacturer, including mastercards, visa cards, smart cards, GSM SIM cards, loyalty cards, and scratch-off cards;
• Traphaco^[9] - The market share leader in the manufacturing, branding and distribution of traditional medicines and herbal supplements in Vietnam;
• Nam Long Real Estate^[10] - One of the most successful housing development firms in the Ho Chi Minh City area, focusing on low-cost and middle market housing;
• An Giang Plant Protection^[11] - The largest distributor of plant protection chemicals in Vietnam, and a pioneer in vertically integrated rice processing in Vietnam;
• Phu Nhuan Jewelry^[12] - The largest jewelry retail chain in Vietnam, with 150 stores;
• FPT Software (F-Soft)^[13] - The largest software outsourcing companby in Vietnam;
• Asia Chemical Corp (ACC)^[14] - The largest locally owned specialty chemical distribution company in Vietnam.

Exits

Mekong Capital has achieved seven complete exits of investments that were unlisted at the time of the original investment: Tan Dai Hung Plastic, Duc Thanh Wood Processing, Saigon Gas, Mai Son Retail, Masan Consumer, Minh Phuc Printing, and International Consumption Products (ICP).

Mekong Capital's Divestment History^I

^I Includes only investments that were unlisted at time of Fund's initial investment

Mekong Capital is holding several other investments in companies that were unlisted at the time of the original investment and are now listed: Traphaco, Ngo Han Magnet Wire, Phu Nhuan Jewelry and Intresco.

Funds

• Mekong Enterprise Fund, Ltd. - Launched in 2002, this fund focuses on private equity investments in Vietnamese SMEs, typically private family owned manufacturing businesses ^[15]
• Mekong Enterprise Fund II, Ltd. - Launched in 2006, this fund focuses on private equity investments in fast growing private Vietnamese companies with excellent management teams, typically in consumer driven industries ^[16]
• Vietnam Azalea Fund, Limited. - Launched in 2007, this fund focuses primarily on pre-IPO investments, including privatizations,^[17][18]
• Mekong Enterprise Fund III, Ltd. - A private equity fund expected to launch in late 2011, focusing on consumer driven industries in Vietnam,^[19][20] typically looking to deploy $10 million to $15 million per deal ^[21]

Vision Driven Investing

Vision Driven Investing is a private equity value creation framework which applies best practices from Private Equity, Executive Coaching, Leadership Development, Corporate Transformation and Change Management in a Private Equity context.

The framework involves aligning around a shared vision with investee companies, subsequently aligning around a business plan with clear milestones and measurable targets for achieving that vision, actively tracking progress against those milestones, and partnering with the investee company to execute the plan in a way that the company is empowered to achieve the vision regardless of the obstacles encountered.

Mekong Capital’s application of Vision Driven Investing is featured in a case study by Harvard Business School entitled Mekong Capital: Building a Culture of Leadership in Vietnam, as well as a case study by London Business School entitled Mekong Capital: The Importance of Corporate Culture in Emerging Markets Private Equity.

References

External links

• Mekong Capital website