Private Hospital Projects Attract Foreign Investment

  After many domestic investors failed to invest in the construction of private hospital, from 2014 until now, especially in the first months of 2016, there were many foreign investors interested in this area.

Recently, a US delegation composed of more than 40 representatives from US leading hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, medical equipment companies, research institutions and medical training institutions came to offer Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) leaders, as well as with the 175 Military Hospital to join hands and develop the private health sector under the health socialization policy of HCMC till 2020.

According to the chairman and founder of the worldwide health service network company, they want to invest in Vietnam medical sector. If so, in addition to investment in infrastructure and equipment in the public - private cooperation model, investors also need to invest in manpower training and hospital management model to operate more efficiently.

According to the Director of the HCMC Health Department, the city is having a lot of large projects that need the cooperation of both domestic and foreign investors such as the Health Complex in Tan Kien, Binh Chanh District, with many projects such as the City Children's Hospital, Hospital of Otolaryngology campus 2, Hematology and Blood Transfusion Hospital, Oncology Hospital, Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medical campus 2...

The Government of Vietnam is conducting the socialization schedule  in the medical field. In fact, the total health expenditures of 93 million people in Vietnam now accounts for 5.8% of GDP, the highest in ASEAN, which is said to become the magnet for investors in this market.

In 2016, many foreign investors such as Bumrungrad Hospital Corporation (Thailand) and Lippo Group (Indonesia) have expressed their intention to develop hospital chain in Vietnam. This is considered a good time to invest in Vietnam health sector.

In a recent meeting with leaders of Vietnam Government, Temasek Corporation (Singapore) said that in the coming time, this corporation wish to promote investment activities in Vietnam, in which they will mainly invest in health sector by building private hospitals.

Earlier, in January 2014, Shangrila Corporation of Malaysia has invested to build Thanh Do Hospital in Binh Tan district, HCMC. The hospital has 320 beds, 21 clinical and subclinical specialties such as obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, surgery, cardiology, otolaryngology, ophthalmology, urology, cancer, hepatobiliary, digestion... Until June 2015, the hospital has announced to change their name and logo into City International Hospital (CIH).

At the beginning of 2016, the investors in the health sector continues to surprise when VOF Investment Fund (managed by VinaCapital) announced to takeover 75% stake in Thai Hoa International Hospital in Dong Thap province. The amount of money that VOF invested here is about 10 million USD.

According VOF, in the coming time, the Fund will continue to seek investment opportunities in the healthcare sector, including investment opportunities in equitized public hospitals if they feel attractive enough.

Finding the right business partner in Vietnam is also important. We recommend doing research on the reputation of the company and individual shareholders, corporate or individual, gathering publicly available company information, and performing background checks on key personnel to find potential risks in cooperation. Working with a reliable partner can help achieve economic benefits, saving time and money in business.