Top 10 Most Valuable Brands in Vietnam in 2017

Sabeco is short for Saigon Beer, Alcohol, and Beverage Corporation. Its origins date back to 1875, when a French businessman named Victor Larue opened a private brewery in Saigon. By 1910, the brewery officially became Cholon Brewery and later merged with BGI, a French beer company, in 1927. After Vietnam's reunification in 1977, the brewery was nationalized and renamed Saigon Brewery, operating under a socialist planned economy. In 2003, the company was privatized, but the state still holds 90% of the shares, with the Ministry of Industry and Trade controlling the stake. Today, Sabeco leads the Vietnamese beer and beverage market with famous brands like Saigon Beer and 333. Forbes Vietnam estimates its brand value at $254.5 million USD.

Despite facing a scandal a year ago, Masan Consumer, officially known as Masan Consumer Corporation, remains a major player in the food and consumer goods industry, making it to the Top 10 Most Valuable Brands in Vietnam 2017. A subsidiary of Masan Group, a diversified conglomerate in Vietnam, Masan Consumer is the country's largest food and consumer goods company. The group owns a range of well-known brands such as fish sauce Nam Ngư, Chinsu fish sauce, Tam Thái Tử soy sauce, Omachi noodles, Kokomi noodles, Vinacafe, and Wake-Up coffee. Forbes Vietnam values the brand at 217.9 million USD.

FPT stands for FPT Corporation, recognized as Vietnam's largest technology conglomerate, primarily specializing in information technology. Originally founded in 1988 as a food processing company under the name The Food Processing Technology Company, FPT rebranded in 1990 as The Corporation for Financing Promoting Technology, focusing on IT. The company went public in 2002. Today, FPT has 8 subsidiaries, including FPT Software, FPT Telecom, and FPT Education, operating in technology, telecommunications, retail, and education. In technology, FPT leads, while in telecommunications, it follows only VNPT in national network subscribers. According to VnReport, FPT is the second-largest private enterprise in Vietnam, just behind VinGroup. Forbes Vietnam values FPT's brand at 176.2 million USD.

The first bank to appear in the Top 10 Most Valuable Brands in Vietnam 2017 list is Vietcombank. Officially known as the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam, Vietcombank is one of the Big Four in the banking sector, alongside Vietinbank, Agribank, and BIDV. Established in 1963 and headquartered at 198 Tran Quang Khai, Hanoi, Vietcombank employs nearly 14,000 staff and operates over 400 branches and offices domestically and internationally. With more than 2,100 ATMs and over 49,500 card payment points, Vietcombank is also the largest company in Vietnam's stock market by capitalization. As of 2017, its registered capital stands at 35,952 billion VND, and its total assets at the end of 2016 amounted to 787,907 billion VND. Forbes Vietnam estimates Vietcombank's brand value at 137 million USD.

Following Vietcombank, another state-owned bank in the Big Four is Vietinbank, or the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade of Vietnam. Vietinbank was established in 1988, spun off from the State Bank of Vietnam, and is headquartered at 108 Tran Hung Dao, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi. The bank operates a transaction office, 150 branches, and over 1,000 savings and transaction points across the country. In 2017, Vietinbank had a registered capital of 37,234 billion VND. Forbes Vietnam values Vietinbank's brand at 137 million USD.

THACO stands for Truong Hai Auto Corporation, established in 1997. It specializes in the production, assembly, distribution, and provision of maintenance services and auto parts, including commercial vehicles such as trucks and buses, as well as passenger vehicles under brands like Kia (South Korea), Mazda (Japan), and Peugeot (Europe). THACO's distribution network spans 93 showrooms and 59 dealerships nationwide. As of mid-2016, the company employed nearly 16,000 people. THACO is the leading enterprise in the production, assembly, and distribution of automobiles in Vietnam, with Forbes Vietnam valuing its brand at 130 million USD.

Ranked 10th in the Top 10 Most Valuable Brands in Vietnam 2017 is BIDV, one of the Big 4 in the banking sector. Officially known as the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam, BIDV was established in 1957 as the Vietnam Construction Bank under the Ministry of Finance. With more than 25,000 employees, BIDV operates 190 branches, 815 transaction offices, 1,824 ATMs, and 34,000 POS terminals across 63 provinces nationwide. It is considered the largest commercial bank in Vietnam by total assets, with an asset value of 1,007 trillion VND. In 2017, BIDV was also ranked in Finance Asia’s Top 100 Largest Banks in Asia. Forbes Vietnam values BIDV's brand at 124.32 million USD.

Vinamilk, officially named Vietnam Dairy Products Joint Stock Company, is the leading company in milk production and distribution in Vietnam. Originally a state-owned enterprise, Vinamilk was founded in 1976 as Southern Milk – Coffee Company, under the Southern Food Industry Department. In 1992, Vinamilk was renamed and in 2003, it became a joint-stock company. Today, Vinamilk dominates 54.5% of the fresh milk market, 40.6% of powdered milk, 33.9% of yogurt drinks, 84.5% of packaged yogurt, and 79.7% of condensed milk in Vietnam. With more than 250 product varieties, including fresh milk, powdered milk, yogurt, condensed milk, cheese, and soy milk, Vinamilk is a model example of a successful privatized state-owned company. CEO Mai Kiều Liên has been recognized by Forbes as one of Asia's 50 most powerful businesswomen. According to Forbes Vietnam, Vinamilk's brand is valued at 1.7148 billion USD, making it the top brand in Top 10 Most Valuable Brands in Vietnam 2017.

Viettel, short for Vietnam Military Telecommunications Group, is a state-owned enterprise that operates in the telecommunications sector. It was originally founded in 1989 as SIGELCO (the Electronics and Information Equipment Corporation), serving the military and national security. SIGELCO was the only company in Vietnam to develop and own a nationwide IT infrastructure. In 2000, SIGELCO entered the telecommunications market, breaking VNPT's mobile network monopoly. In 2003, it officially became Viettel, now a global leader in telecommunications. Viettel has expanded beyond Vietnam, operating in 7 countries across three continents. By 2013, Viettel reached 1 billion USD in foreign investment revenue. As of 2012, its total revenue had grown to 7 billion USD, with a global subscriber base of 60 million. Forbes Vietnam currently values Viettel's brand at 849.6 million USD.

Regarded as the largest private conglomerate in Vietnam, VinGroup is undeniably part of the Top 10 Most Valuable Brands in Vietnam 2017. Established in 1993 under the name Technocom, initially focusing on instant noodles in Ukraine, VinGroup officially emerged in 2011 following the merger of VinPearl and Vincom, marking one of Vietnam's largest mergers to date. VinGroup operates across various sectors, including VinHomes (real estate), VinPearl (luxury resorts), VinCom (shopping centers, retail), VinSchool (education), Mytour (healthcare), VinMart (supermarkets), and numerous subsidiaries such as A Đâý Rồi (e-commerce), VinEco, VinPro, VinDS, VinCommerce... Currently, VinGroup continues to lead the real estate market. Pham Nhat Vuong, Chairman of the Board of VinGroup, has been Vietnam’s wealthiest individual since 2010. According to Forbes Vietnam, the brand's value was estimated at 299.3 million USD in 2017.