Growing up in Hanoi’s Old Quarter

Huy: I grew up in Hanoi’s Old Quarter, one of the city’s most historic trading areas, which has been a commercial hub for over a hundred years. Growing up in such a condensed area, I was surrounded by business owners—people opening their own coffee shops, restaurants, and fashion stores. Vietnam, in general, has a strong entrepreneurial spirit, and I was exposed to that environment from a young age.

My mom was an entrepreneur herself, and I naturally followed in her footsteps. We ran a small herbal shop in the Old Quarter, managing a large inventory. Back then, many businesses operated directly on the street, and we did the same. Every day, I helped my mom bring out the inventory from our house to the street and then pack it up at the end of the day.

Paulo: So that was your business class.

Huy: Exactly. Growing up in that environment gave me a lot of perspective. Now, looking back, I realize how much I learned—how businesses function, how people operate. It was old-school entrepreneurship. In fact, my primary school was right in the middle of it all.

Moving to Sydney

Paulo: How did you end up deciding to go to Australia? And why Australia, of all places?

Huy: Actually, it wasn’t my decision. One day, my mom just told me, “Hey, your cousin is in Australia—you should go there too.” And I said, “Okay.”

I asked her what I needed to do, and she told me I had to learn English. So I took a few English classes before going to Australia, took my IELTS test, and once I qualified, I moved to Sydney to study. That was pretty much how I ended up there.

Finding Inspiration in Australian Startups

Huy: There was a place in Sydney called Fishburners—very popular in the startup scene. Every Friday, they hosted a founder gathering with pizza, where people could listen to different startup pitches, network, and exchange ideas. Back in 2014 and 2015, Sydney was starting to see more and more tech startups emerging—not exactly a boom yet, but the ecosystem was developing.

One of the founders who left a strong impression on me was Chris Brycki, the founder of Stockspot. I was actually one of his clients. Stockspot helps people save and invest, a model quite similar to what Finhay does now. I also used Acorns in Australia, a micro-investing platform. Jeff Cruttenden, the co-founder of Acorns in the U.S., was someone I learned a lot from.

After founding two startups in Australia, I launched my third one—Finhay—focused on helping retail clients in Vietnam access financial services. At the time, the Vietnamese government was pushing for Industry 4.0 transformation, which created a lot of opportunities.

Answering the Call Home

Paulo: What made you decide to go back to Vietnam?

Huy: There were two reasons. First, Finhay itself was an important factor. Second, my family was still in Vietnam. I had been in Australia for almost 10 years, and I felt it was time to spend more time back home.

Also, Southeast Asia—especially Vietnam—is a vibrant market. The opportunities were growing rapidly, and I wanted to be part of that.

Paulo: You built two startups in Australia and then your third in Vietnam. What was the biggest difference in starting a business there versus here?

Huy: There were a few major differences.

1. Cost-effectiveness: Vietnam, and Southeast Asia in general, is much more cost-effective compared to Australia.
2. Talent: Vietnam has a strong talent pool, especially in engineering. In Sydney, it was incredibly difficult to convince engineers working at Google, Amazon, or Microsoft to join a startup. But in Vietnam, people were much more willing to take risks.
3. Market size and demographics: Vietnam has 100 million people, with a young population—the median age is around 32 to 33 years old. It’s a fast-growing, tech-savvy market.

When I returned in 2017–2018, Vietnam’s digital ecosystem was still developing, but within two to three years, it had transformed significantly.

A Lot Has Changed with Vietnam

Paulo: How do you feel now, seeing how Vietnam has developed in terms of talent and the digital ecosystem?

Huy: It’s incredible. Just a few days ago, Jensen Huang, the CEO of NVIDIA, was here in Hanoi, and they’re setting up an R&D center here. That shows how much the country has changed.

When I first came back in 2017, everything was still cash-based. If you asked someone whether you could transfer money via bank, they’d look at you like you were crazy. Now, just seven years later, cashless payments are the norm. People prefer QR payments or card transactions, and if you try to pay in cash, they might even ask, “Can you transfer instead?”

Banking has improved tremendously, and Vietnam is advancing rapidly in fintech and digital payments.

Paulo: In some ways, Vietnam is already ahead (of Australia) in digital payments.

Huy: Oh, absolutely. Vietnam is transforming at a rapid pace.