Genesia leads investment in Vietcetera Media

Japan’s Genesia Ventures Inc. took the lead in a $700,000 investment in the Vietnam-based startup Vietcetera Media.

The deal, which was completed during the first quarter of 2020, is only being announced now because Vietcetera had to get its digital media license from the government first, said Hao Tran, co-founder and chief executive officer. Also part of the funding was Silicon Valley-based Hustle Fund Management.

The digital media company, which is headquartered in Ho Chi Minh City, provides content in both Vietnamese and English, ranging from business articles to lifestyle stories and podcasts. It is about to complete its Series A funding and has raised several million dollars in the first half of 2021, Tran said. Serving an audience of about 1.1 million monthly, 60% of which are women majorly under 35, the firm recently produced a rap video which features U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam Daniel Kritenbrink.

Vietcetera’s website readership grew by 700% last year. The newly acquired funds are being applied towards expanding the platform’s work in data science, while also helping to accelerate product development and increase market share, the CEO said. A report by experts at Alphabet Inc.’s Google, Temasek Holdings Pte and Bain & Co forecasts Vietnam’s online media market will reach $7 billion in 2025 from $3.3 billion last year. The report also reveals that the e-economy is on course to rise to $52 billion in value in 2025, a significant improvement on 2020’s $14 billion