On angel investors and funding barriers in Vietnam informal venture capital market

Abstract

Angel Investing or informal investment market is an alternative financing channel for startups, small business, and especially for early stage businesses, has been developed in America and Europe for a long time but has been appeared in Vietnam recently. It is an extremely opaque market with all deals negotiated behind closed doors. There has been insufficient research done in this particular area with limited or no information available to the public. As-of 2015, the number of investments from angel investors had increased significantly, and this has led to the need to shine a light on this murky market and understanding the profiles of angel investors or informal investment market in Vietnam, and how of these features contribute to the funding barriers in Vietnam’s informal venture capital market. This research also helps to answers: (i) who are the angel investors or informal investors, (ii) with what are the size of investment, (iii) with what equity ownership range, and (iv) with what ‘other’ preferences. We will explain the common reasons most entrepreneurs fails to obtain investment from angel investors or informal investment market. We will give suggestions on how investors and investees can overcome these barriers to have an informed decision towards (i) investments, or (ii) being invested respectively. Keywords: Angel Investors, Entrepreneurship, Startups, Venture Capital Market, Funding Barriers