• IDGVV Press Releases

IDG Ventures Vietnam appoints Hoang B. Nguyen as Managing General Partner

HANOI, VIETNAM- July 29, 2004

IDG Ventures, a global venture capital and private equity firm affiliated with International Data Group (IDG), announced today that Hoang B. Nguyen has been appointed Managing General Partner of the IDG Ventures Vietnam Fund, a $100 million investment fund in Vietnam.

The IDG Ventures Vietnam Fund is the first technology venture capital fund in Vietnam. IDG Ventures Vietnam will open offices in both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to identify and develop companies with high-potential in the IT and technology sector in Vietnam.

Prior to joining IDG Ventures Vietnam, Nguyen served as the Managing Director in Asia for VITC, a U.S. telecommunications company with operations throughout Asia. Nguyen helped found the company and has been responsible for managing the company’s Vietnam and Asia operations for the past three years.

Patrick McGovern, Founder and Chairman of IDG, said, “Hoang Nguyen has the technology market knowledge, the entrepreneur coaching skills, and excellent relationships with key government and industry leaders in Vietnam to make him very well-qualified to be the Managing General Partner of IDG Ventures Vietnam.”

McGovern continued: “IDG began venture capital activities in China in 1992 and has achieved over 50% annual appreciation of its VC investments there. We believe the conditions are right now for Vietnam to be the ‘next China’ for technology venture capital investors.”

Before joining VITC, Nguyen was an Associate at Goldman Sachs in Equity Research for the Technology Group in Enterprise Software. In addition to work in telecommunications and finance, Nguyen is committed to developing entrepreneurial businesses in Vietnam. In particular, Nguyen is interested in the development of biotechnology/healthcare, software development, finance and banking in Vietnam.

“Vietnam is a country of great potential,” said Hoang Nguyen. “It has the people, intellectual resources, and energy to become a center of IT and technology development. We at IDG see an extremely bright future for venture capital investments in Vietnam and strongly believe that the technology sector is at its taking-off point here. We look forward to contributing not only investment capital, but also our expertise and experience for the purpose of developing great technology companies in Vietnam.”

Nguyen studied at Harvard University where he was a Harvard National Scholar. He was also a Ford Undergraduate Research Fellow and graduated Magna cum Laude in 1995 with a Bachelors Degree in the Classics. After Harvard, Nguyen earned both his M.D. and M.B.A. degrees from Northwestern University (the Feinberg School of Medicine and the Kellogg School of Management).

During his time at Northwestern, Nguyen collaborated with colleagues to form S2S Medical Publishing which produced learning material for medical students and physicians-in-training. The company also helped create Medschool.com, a distance learning platform for medical students and professionals. In his academic pursuits, Nguyen also conducted research on the early signaling proteins of brain development which was published in Neuron and other science journals.

Nguyen’s experience in technology, as well as his healthcare and finance background, will strengthen the IDG investment team and provide great insights for IDG’s portfolio companies in Vietnam.

IDG Ventures has funds in the U.S., China, and Europe with offices in San Francisco, Boston, Seattle, London, Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Nanjing. International Data Group (IDG) is the world’s leading technology media, research, and event company.

About IDG Ventures

IDG Ventures is a global family of locally managed venture capital funds pursuing investment opportunities across a broad array of technology industry sectors including enterprise software, communications software, Internet enabling software, wireless technologies and services, IT-related technologies and services, and biotechnology. With nearly $700 million in capital currently under management, IDG Ventures invests in companies ranging from early to late-stage across these sectors. Previous investments by the firm include Excite, F5 Networks, Netscape, Spinner.com, and VA Linux.

IDG Ventures is a subsidiary of International Data Group (IDG), the world’s leading technology media, research, and event company. A privately-held company, IDG publishes more than 300 magazines and newspapers including Bio-IT World, CIO, CSO, Computerworld, GamePro, InfoWorld, Network World, and PC World. The company features the largest network of technology-specific Web sites with more than 400 around the world. IDG is also a leading producer of more than 170 computer-related events worldwide including LinuxWorld Conference & ExpoR, Macworld Conference and ExpoR, COMNETR Conference and Expo, DEMOR, and IDC Directions. IDG also provides global market research and advice through offices in 50 countries though its IDC subsidiary. Company information is available at http://www.idgvv.com.vn/en

For further information, please contact:

Ms. Nguyen Que Anh
IDG Ventures Vietnam
84-4-220 0348 – Hanoi office
84-8-827 8888 – Hochiminh City office
queanh_nguyen@idgvv.com.vn/en
http://www.idgvv.com.vn/en