Michael Page: Vietnam surges to the front of Southeast Asia’s fintech race

HO CHI MINH CITY, VIETNAM - Media OutReach - 27 December 2019 - As Vietnam shifts its focus from low-tech manufacturing to a service-oriented economy, more efforts are going into building its information technology (IT) industry. Vietnam continues to grow as a regional market for both domestic and global technology companies.

One of the sectors within the tech industry showing great promise for growth is Vietnam's fintech industry, expected to hit US$7.8 billion in revenue by 2020. An estimated 120 companies and brands cover a wide range of services, from wealth management to blockchain and digital payments.

Details from the Vietnam Employment Outlook 2020 published by professional recruitment services firm -- Michael Page, draws attention to the growth and transformation of the financial services and fintech industries.

Mark Donnelly, Director at Michael Page Vietnam added, "The continued movement of the technology, software, gaming and mobile segments, makes for a buoyant conversation around the start-up market, and marks technology in general as an exciting space."

Vietnam's FMCG industry also looks set for success in the coming year. According to the Employment Outlook 2020, employees can expect a 15 -- 20% average salary increase when switching jobs within similar industries.

"In Michael Page Vietnam's growing industry segments, we continue to see a race for market-ready talent. In particular, professionals with a strong track record, who are looking to move their careers forward across some of the fastest growing disciplines including digital, property, fintech, manufacturing and FMCG," commented Mark Donnelly.  

As Vietnam's economy accelerates, the search for skilled top talent to fuel that growth continues. While technical skills go a long way in numerous specialised fields, organisations are keen to hire employees with not just technical capabilities, but the soft skills required to succeed and lead at the workplace.

According to the report, conflict management, change management, mentorship, stress management and communication were cited as the top sought-after soft skills in today's workplace.

Download the full Michael Page Vietnam Employment Outlook 2020 report here.

Editor's notes: The Michael Page Vietnam Employment Outlook 2020 is derived from 1,000 data points in our proprietary data and network, which includes job advertisements and placements from July 2018 to June 2019.