Shinhan Financial Group Partners with Vietnam's Grab to Foster Startups

Digital Finance Collaboration with Startups... MOU Signed

Shin Dong-min, Vietnam Country Head of Shinhan Financial Group (second from right), and Nguyen Thai Hai Van, CEO of Grab Vietnam (third from right), who attended the agreement ceremony held at Grab Vietnam headquarters on the 20th, are posing for a commemorative photo.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kangwook Cho] Shinhan Financial Group has rolled up its sleeves to foster startups in Vietnam, which accounts for the largest share of its overseas business.

On the 22nd, Shinhan Financial Group announced that it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Grab, a Vietnamese mobility company, at Grab Vietnam's headquarters located in Ho Chi Minh City to jointly nurture Vietnamese startups and expand digital financial services.

Grab, known as the "Uber of Southeast Asia," is the number one mobility company in Vietnam, providing ride-sharing services in eight Southeast Asian countries including Singapore and Indonesia. Recently, it has expanded its business into various areas such as logistics delivery and mobile payment systems.

At the signing ceremony held on the 20th, key officials from both companies, including Shin Dong-min, Vietnam Country Head of Shinhan Financial Group, and Nguyen Thai Hai Van, CEO of Grab Vietnam, attended and agreed to actively cooperate on ▲joint selection and nurturing of Vietnamese startups ▲development of new digital financial services.

Shinhan Financial's "Shinhan Futures Lab Vietnam" and Grab plan to discover startups across a wide range of fields including fintech, digital, transportation, food, and real estate, together with local leading companies and government partners in key industries, and support the startup ecosystem through industry-specific mentoring programs.

Additionally, Shinhan Financial plans to utilize Grab's platform and customer network to upgrade digital and non-face-to-face financial services. Through this, they aim to provide differentiated financial services tailored to the local market and diversify business models by discovering synergies between the two companies.

Shin Dong-min, Vietnam Country Head of Shinhan Financial, said, "Through this agreement, we will establish an advanced financial service environment through digital innovation, coexist with the local startup ecosystem, and build various business models. We also plan to continuously pursue partnerships with local companies as part of the group's ongoing 'Global DT' initiative."

Nguyen Thai Hai Van, CEO of Grab Vietnam, said, "As Southeast Asia's first decacorn, Grab is providing various support not only for Vietnam but also for building the Southeast Asian startup ecosystem. Through collaboration with Shinhan Financial, we will provide better financial services to users and continuously strive to cooperate in promising industrial technology fields and expand our global network."