Le Hong Minh: Gamer to Revolutionizing Vietnamese Gaming

foreign [Music] [Applause] [Applause] [Music] welcome to Vietnam Untold today we will delve into the remarkable journey and achievements of lahang Min the co-founder of vng Corporation from his humble beginnings as a game Enthusiast to becoming a prominent figure in the technology industry men's entrepreneurial spirit and Innovative thinking have propelled vng to the Forefront of Vietnam's technology landscape born in Hanoi lahangman co-founded Vena games in 2004 later diversifying it to become vng Corporation a technology company specializing in digital content Online Entertainment social networking and e-commerce vng focuses on four main businesses including online games platforms digital payments and cloud services men studied Banking and finance at Monash University Australia while studying abroad he worked part-time at convenience stores to cover living expenses and gain valuable experience lahang Min the founder and CEO of vng Corporation has carved a unique path from banking to gaming despite studying finance and starting his career as an investment banker at Vena Capital upon his return to Vietnam in 2001. min's passion for gaming continued to thrive in 2002 he attended the world cyber games in Korea an experience that ignited his entrepreneurial spirit inspired by his love for games Min and his friends established a small internet cafe called Game Zone in early 2003. this Venture served as a place to indulge their gaming passion and a business opportunity during the early 2000s internet cafes were trendy and GameZone quickly gained traction among Gamers offering popular land games such as Counter-Strike Red Alert Starcraft and Warcraft however min's Ambitions exceeded hosting gaming sessions at the internet cafe he recognized the potential for web games in Vietnam and sought to make popular titles accessible in the local language one such game was mu Global a web-based game already popular worldwide but only available in English despite initially facing rejection when trying to license the game from Korea Min turned his attention to China in China Min met with Lei Jun and his team from kingsoft a prominent Chinese software company that had developed the highly acclaimed game swordsman online despite the language barrier Min successfully negotiated a licensing deal for the game which proved to be a turning point for Vena games within six months of its launch in 2005 swordsman online known as volam tree and KY in Vietnamese amassed a staggering 1 million users in Vietnam the success of swordsman online marked a significant milestone for Vena games attracting the attention of investors Vena games secured its first and only financing round from idg ventures in the same year remarkably vng achieved profitability in its inaugural year a testament to min's dedication and the company's rapid expansion into various areas of the online industry in 2009 vinigame underwent a significant rebranding and changed its name to vng with this transformation vng expanded its Mission Beyond games and ventured into various technology sectors including social networks e-commerce digital content and electronic payments today vng is a well-known and trusted name among the Vietnamese population offering various applications and Innovative Technologies vng is currently the leading technology company in the Vietnamese Market the company made a significant move by initiating an initial public offering IPO in the United States this strategic decision is seen as a crucial step for vng to accelerate its expansion into the global market and prepare for the ongoing wave of the fourth Industrial Revolution one of the standout components within vng's ecosystem is zing me which emerged as the largest social network in Vietnam back in 2009 however with the introduction and unblocking of Facebook in Vietnam Zing Me faced Swift competition and was quickly surpassed in user base and popularity after over a decade of growth vng expanded its Workforce to 2000. this startup has significantly impacted Vietnam and the region through its innovative products such as Salo and Zing thanks to its team's dedication and distinctive thinking among vng's impressive product lineup zala stands out as the most noteworthy with a staggering user base of 100 million and an astounding 1 billion messages sent viazalo daily the platform has gained widespread popularity and engagement vng's success has not gone unnoticed as the world economic Forum wef recognizes it as one of the 20 fastest growing businesses in Southeast Asia through participating in these events Min offers valuable insights and guidance based on his journey as a successful entrepreneur he understands the challenges and opportunities that young people in startups face and he shares his expertise to help them navigate the complexities of the business world by engaging with startups and young individuals in forums and meetings Min plays a significant role in fostering a culture of Entrepreneurship and innovation his presence and willingness to share insights Inspire and motivate aspiring entrepreneurs empowering them to pursue their dreams and navigate the path to success it also contributes to the overall growth and success of the startup ecosystem in Vietnam thank you for watching Vietnam Untold stay informed stay connected thank you very much for tuning in don't forget to subscribe now for all you need to know about Vietnam and Vietnamese Americans foreign