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00:00:00:00 - 00:00:03:03 Unknown Are you sick of banks giving you horrible savings? Return.
00:00:03:03 - 00:00:05:17 Unknown Can't deal with the ups and downs of the stock market.
00:00:05:17 - 00:00:10:04 Unknown There's another way. Well, depends on where you are for now.
00:00:10:04 - 00:00:22:16 Unknown The solution is my money. A fintech platform that offers everyday investors, you and me, access to wholesale investment products and technology to help us grow our wealth. Isn't that cool?
00:00:22:16 - 00:00:28:13 Unknown $2 million in investments, growing 45% month over month. Let's figure out how they did it.
00:00:28:13 - 00:00:33:00 Unknown You.
00:00:33:02 - 00:00:59:05 Unknown Welcome back to Founders in Motion today joining us we have New England. He is the CEO of My Money, a fintech platform in Vietnam that's making investing easier and more accessible for everyday people like us by leveraging innovative technology and partnering with reputable local funds like King Capital and ADT capital, my money is bringing private wealth management experiences and competitive rates to everyday investors.
00:00:59:07 - 00:01:01:03 Unknown Nick, welcome to the show.
00:01:01:03 - 00:01:20:18 Unknown Thank you so much for having me. Very excited to be here. And especially, you know, being one of the first few people to to join her on your podcast. And, you know, it's quite exciting to share a little bit more about my experiences and a bit about the wealth management space in Vietnam. Yeah, and it's a long time coming.
00:01:20:18 - 00:01:42:16 Unknown So I'm really happy that we got a chance to sit down and do this. And just to set the stage for listeners who aren't deep in the world of investing in Vietnam. Can you give us a lay of the land? What are the go to investment products and why do they dominate the market? Yeah. So there are a couple of, you know, investment products that are quite prominent in Vietnam.
00:01:42:16 - 00:02:02:16 Unknown So you probably know, you know, real estate, gold or bank deposits are there. These three are the main financial products. And so first, real estate culturally, I think it's seen as something that is very, you know, safe and secure to build your wealth. But it's very capital intensive and not really, you know, very accessible for the everyday investor.
00:02:02:16 - 00:02:21:21 Unknown There's also obviously gold as well. And I think it's seen as financial products that you can actually invest to preserve your wealth. But the problem with gold is that it doesn't really generate passive income. And lastly, with bank deposits, that's, you know, that's a very, you know, you know, popular, product that a lot of the Vietnamese people actually put their money into.
00:02:22:03 - 00:02:46:21 Unknown It's very safe and secure, but it doesn't necessarily have, be able to give you, you know, the yield for you to actually build your wealth beyond those three financial products. There's also like the stock market as well. It's growing in Vietnam, but at the same time it's very volatile. And so I think that with the stock market, you actually have to have a lot of the financial knowledge or the time to actually invest, which a lot of the retail investors do not have.
00:02:46:21 - 00:03:12:13 Unknown So I think that financial literacy is really important to educate customers to enter into the, into the stock market. So I think those are the I guess, the big, financial products are in Vietnam, but I think that's where my money comes in. And we wanted to make, you know, more, give more of your institutional quality, investment products are available just to everyday investors, and connecting them with, you know, our partner fund managers to distribute, those products.
00:03:12:13 - 00:03:48:13 Unknown So to help them build their wealth in a very simple and accessible way beyond the financial products are prominent in the market. So you've worked in financial products in Australia prior to starting my Money. Can we talk about sort of some key structural differences between these two markets that impact investment options? So in Australia, it's a very, you know, obviously developed market with, you know, deep capital markets and strong investor protection as well in Australia, you know, structurally and your long term financial planning is very, I guess, very built into the system.
00:03:48:13 - 00:04:09:08 Unknown So I'm not sure if you had heard about the superannuation system that we have in Australia. So I think it's similar to your for one k in the US where, the employers put a portion of the employees salary into managed funds. So even if you know, you're not really actively investing, you're actually building your wealth in the background and, you know, the long term financial planning.
00:04:09:08 - 00:04:29:06 Unknown So a lot of the younger people have already been exposed to long term investing from such a young age by just working for an employer. And it's a very automatic sort of process. And I think that's where, you know, when I, you know, I grew up in Vietnam, but I lived in Australia in my adulthood. And, you know, despite studying finance, long term financial planning was something that I wasn't exposed to, in Vietnam.
00:04:29:06 - 00:04:45:00 Unknown But I was sort of quite shocked that, like, you know, in Australia, they have this sort of system so that, you know, even if I'm not really investing, I'm still building my wealth. And I feel like in Vietnam, we lack that there isn't a system in place that encourages people to, you know, help people to actually build their wealth long term.
00:04:45:04 - 00:05:03:13 Unknown So I think the superannuation system is good in that sense. And I think that the difference between that and the foreign K is that it's actually mandatory. So I think that's a great thing that we have in Australia. And so I think, you know, because of that and, you know, younger investors in Australia actually get exposed to investing in such a young age.
00:05:03:15 - 00:05:28:16 Unknown In Vietnam, I think when speaking, you know, obviously, it's a little bit different where, despite regardless of where, which your income levels, you come from, I think culturally, building wealth is, is also building wealth. It's related to, like, you know, like family wealth. And so that, you know, a lot of the younger people, when they get first, get started into, you know, long term financial planning, they don't know where to get started.
00:05:28:18 - 00:05:48:13 Unknown And so I think that, you know, obviously the two systems are like that because we don't have that superannuation system in Vietnam. So I think that's why the concept of, you know, being able to build your wealth by yourself is such a new concept by Australia. It's very automatic, but I think it's also the range of financial products are available in both markets as well.
00:05:48:13 - 00:06:06:04 Unknown So that in Australia, there's a broader range of financial products that, you know, the retail investors get to invest into. So there's like, you know, from ETFs to managed funds and Vietnam, those sort of products are not as prominent. And only people are very used to putting money into like savings account or, you know, investing into real estate.
00:06:06:04 - 00:06:26:19 Unknown But real estate is very capital intensive, as I've mentioned, and it's very difficult for your young people who just only get started to be able to build their wealth, you know, to be able to get access to those financial products that is fully, what I think is different between the two markets. So the structural differences in terms of the, you know, the superannuation system in Australia, we don't have that in Vietnam.
00:06:26:19 - 00:06:49:19 Unknown And also the broader range of financial products, but also at financial markets in Australia is very transparent and very regulated and have strong investor protection. It does get the everyday investor, you know, a lot of confidence to, you know, invest into those financial products. Whereas in Vietnam we we don't have that yet. So people are quite hesitant, especially when it comes to new financial products that come into market.
00:06:49:21 - 00:07:12:03 Unknown Yeah, that's a great breakdown. And talk to me a little bit about why are these products like ETFs? And I guess stocks in the recent days prominent in countries like Australia, but not quite so in Vietnam? Is it a supply or demand issue? I think it's more of I think financial literacy plays a big part as well.
00:07:12:05 - 00:07:38:08 Unknown I know that when I was in Australia, you know, a lot of my friends are, they're quite, you know, well-versed in terms of, you know, you know, personal finance and know how to really manage your wealth and understanding that level of risk and reward when it comes to different financial products. So I think there's a lot of educational materials and also education about, you know, personal finance and different financial products is quite ingrained in, not just university, but also, you know, they're a doing high school as well.
00:07:38:10 - 00:07:59:10 Unknown And but in Vietnam, I feel like this, this is not really that well established in terms of, you know, like having a lot of financial education materials to better manage your wealth. So I think that the financial literacy is one of it. So because of, you know, people understand the levels of risk and reward when it comes to investing, then, you know, they're more confident in terms of like, okay, how do I make those informed financial decisions?
00:07:59:16 - 00:08:22:17 Unknown But because, you know, with ETFs and managed funds, I think ETFs are they're out there in Vietnam. But I think it's because of the financial education that is not really prominent in Vietnam and hence why financial literacy is, you know, it's quite low here. But also because like I've mentioned in the last question, I think, there's like stronger investor protections in Australia, developed markets like in Australia.
00:08:22:17 - 00:08:47:11 Unknown But here, we, you know, obviously it's still developed. It's a loving market in Vietnam. And so I think people are generally more cautious about new investing into new financial products. So I think managed funds and especially I think managed funds in Vietnam, they're not really so accessible. These products are usually designed for institutional investors or high net worth individuals that require a higher amount of investment amount so that, you know, ETFs are they're quite accessible.
00:08:47:11 - 00:09:10:09 Unknown But you need to understand that, you know, the levels of risk or having the time to research the market. But managed funds, there's not many options are available. And if they are available, they're available for, you know, you know, institutional investors. So that with my money, we wanted to make sure that, you know, you know, people have your access, to, to these, you know, premium financial products to build their wealth.
00:09:10:09 - 00:09:37:00 Unknown And how do we make it very accessible for the everyday Vietnamese person? So, lower minimum investment amounts. And they also can take part on new investing like the professionals. So I really love that. And that's a great segue for to learn a bit more about my money. So my money is flipping the script with its two flagship products my cash, a flexible high yield savings account with no withdrawal penalty, and My green, a long term investment option.
00:09:37:00 - 00:10:06:11 Unknown Focus on green assets. So with my cash offering up to 4.8% and my green reaching to 8.5%, significantly higher than what the local commercial banks offer. How do these products differ from your traditional savings and investment options? So I think the biggest difference between traditional savings, savings accounts in Vietnam and, you know, most investment products is that savings accounts, in Vietnam offer a lower return, but like high levels of security.
00:10:06:11 - 00:10:33:22 Unknown And whereas, you know, investment products, investment options are out there, they either are too complex or not really so accessible for the everyday Vietnamese investor. So we want to bridge the gap by making investing more simple, as simple as savings, was also providing significantly higher returns to help retail investors build their wealth. And how we do this is that we partner with our partner fund managers and do what they do best, which is, you know, managing funds.
00:10:33:22 - 00:10:57:06 Unknown My cash is designed as something that's very flexible, high yield alternative to your cash savings account. So no cash savings account in Vietnam generally yield around 0.1%. But we want it to be able to, you know, beat those returns by working with fund managers. And, fund managers have a range of investment products so they can allocate the money into, rather than just, you know, traditional lending or, you know, government bonds.
00:10:57:06 - 00:11:22:10 Unknown And so that we want to be able with my cash product, we want to be able to give a higher return, but don't penalize the customers if they need the liquidity or need to withdraw their withdraw their money. My green is for those looking to invest longer term, especially in sustainable and green assets. So, the mix of products we do, allocate and to prioritize projects or assets are, you know, green.
00:11:22:10 - 00:11:44:22 Unknown And also there's certain sectors in the portfolio that we're not really investing into. So I think traditional, investment options in Vietnam tend to focus on real estate or stocks, which require a lot of capital and knowledge. But with my green, we give people access to high quality investments are professionally managed by your, a fund manager that has a license.
00:11:44:22 - 00:12:04:21 Unknown And you'll be able to create these portfolios that align with the investor's values as well as different national goals as well. So I think what makes my money different is that we're not just offering investment products. Were providing the tech and the infrastructure to fund managers that they can leverage so they can reach new markets, especially the retail market.
00:12:04:23 - 00:12:30:12 Unknown And we handle everything from onboarding, customer servicing and even sales and marketing to the fund manager products and to make it easier for, you know, to reach retail investors and retail investors having access to those financial products to build their long term wealth. Yeah, that sounds amazing. And we talk about a lot of different things that is hindering kind of the growth of financial investment products in Vietnam.
00:12:30:12 - 00:12:50:21 Unknown But and I'm sure there's a long list, but if you had to pick the top game changers, that would need to happen in order to have higher adoption of financial investment products, what would they be? Yeah. Oh, there's a lot of things I think, would need to change, too. It's a long list. Yeah, it's a long list.
00:12:50:23 - 00:13:14:03 Unknown But what I can think about, I think I've mentioned before that I think financial literacy is, you know, is very is a key factor. So a lot of people don't simply invest because they don't know where to start or really, you know, know where, how to allocate their money. So I think the earlier that, you know, we educate people about investing in at such a young age, then when, you know, time comes.
00:13:14:03 - 00:13:32:08 Unknown So make that first step and be confident to you. Make the first step into building their long term wealth. So I think that, you know, financial literacy is really one of the most important things that point needs to be able to increase. I also think that as Vietnam is developing, I think, you know, I also think that regulation and trust is also important.
00:13:32:08 - 00:14:02:20 Unknown So, you know, as I've mentioned in Australia, there's like strong investor protection and it's like a very developed market. And in Vietnam the fintech space is still evolving. So if we have new, stronger regulations, that will bring a lot of trust in financial products, especially new emerging financial products in the market. So when people see that there's like, you know, like rules and strong protections in place, that they'll be more confident and willing to make that first step to explore more investment options beyond the traditional assets, as I've mentioned, real estate, bank deposits and gold.
00:14:02:20 - 00:14:22:22 Unknown But I think ultimately, I think the last reason should a certain mindset from just like short term games to, you know, long term financial planning, you know, in Australia there's there's like the superannuation system in place that they are forced to think about, you know, building the wealth for retirement, and for long term. But right now, you know, Vietnam, we don't have that at the moment.
00:14:22:22 - 00:14:52:12 Unknown And also, I think the shift in mindset also shifting from, you know, instead of relying on, you know, family support. And we should shift the mindset to from that to, you know, more structured long term financial planning. So I think encouraging a culture of investing for the future, and also whether it's for retirement or any of your of your your important life goals, like for a wedding, buying a house, I think, you know, being able to shift that mindset will make people more comfortable and take that step to actually think about, you know, how do you build your wealth long term.
00:14:52:14 - 00:15:15:14 Unknown And so we're quite transparent about, you know, which fund managers that we work with and we let or in terms of our customers investments are all managed by our partner fund managers and do what they do best. And were just, providing the tech stack and be able to service all the smaller clients that, you know, fund managers don't typically want to service, don't typically service because it does require a lot of the infrastructure and time and resources.
00:15:15:14 - 00:15:39:07 Unknown So they can outsource all the tech stuff to us, and they do all the investing. So that does bring a little bit of trust to the market. But I think with financial products, especially new ones in Vietnam, to be able to gain that trust, it takes time. And if you are able to, you know, build that into the market by being transparent and making the products accessible but also transparent about, you know, how, the parts are being operated, who's managing the funds.
00:15:39:10 - 00:16:02:19 Unknown It's what really brings that, you know, trust back to the retail customers and making them more comfortable, and making that first step, more your personal journey now, what inspired you to really start my money? Yeah. I think honestly, a lot of things. But I have to pinpoint, I didn't get any really seven from, you know, two reasons I think.
00:16:02:21 - 00:16:21:21 Unknown I think first, my money was actually born out of my experiences navigating my personal finance. So I think growing up in Vietnam and, you know, and you go having Vietnam and also going to Australia in my early adulthood, I think that despite working in finance, I don't truly understand how do I plan for my long term financial future.
00:16:22:03 - 00:16:39:14 Unknown I think that those, you know, obviously that when I explain about the two markets, I wasn't exposed to the superannuation system at such a young age. And I think my early, you know, work experiences were just in Australia. So I think I was exposed to, you know, the, the superannuation system and you're being exposed to long term financial planning.
00:16:39:14 - 00:17:06:03 Unknown And I think that, I saw it that that was lacking in Vietnam. And, especially when the mindset when it comes to investing in Vietnam, it was very short term, or a very FOMO driven. And if if it's not that, then, you know, then people, when they feel that they don't have enough financial education or financial knowledge, they'll start to just putting their money into bank deposits, or putting in money into, you know, not not really taking a little bit of risk in the market.
00:17:06:05 - 00:17:34:15 Unknown And so losing out on opportunities for long term wealth building. And I saw that, you know, even just like my friends, my colleagues in Australia, they they're very well versed in that area. And I'm just like, okay, I'm studying finance but never really got started with that. So I wanted to bring that to Vietnam. And changing that. Our mission is to be able to not just making financial products accessible, but changing the mindset when it comes to investing and also helping people understand the level of risk and reward when it comes to different financial products.
00:17:34:19 - 00:18:01:01 Unknown So another major inspiration came from, you know, when I started my own charity group when I was younger, so I raised $1,500 to build a playroom at the pediatric hospital. So I think that when I saw, firsthand how families struggled, you know, to pay medical bills for their kids, you know, struggling from cancer, I think it really enforced a belief that I have today, which is financial security is more than just money.
00:18:01:03 - 00:18:29:14 Unknown It's about giving the freedom to focus on what truly matters in life. I think that's the combination of the two factors. And two reasons really inspired me to start my money. So it's like born and it's not just something that was, you know, a professional mission, but it's also a personal mission of mine is to be able to make make sure that you help everyday Vietnamese take control of their finances and not just giving them better access to investment options, but also by making financial independence fuel usable for everyone.
00:18:29:14 - 00:19:00:22 Unknown So I think that's, yeah, there's a lot of reasons why I started my money, but I think it's really stemmed from my own personal experiences, you know, dealing with personal finance and long term financial planning and me, you know, going, experiencing the two markets in Australia and Vietnam. And also I think, the, the inspiration for, you know, starting a business and entrepreneurship and, you know, especially in this space really stemmed from my experiences when I started that charity group and seeing firsthand, you know, how the kids are struggling and the parents are struggling with medical bills and really touched me.
00:19:01:01 - 00:19:20:11 Unknown So I really made it my personal mission to make sure that, you know, I create a platform that everyone can be able to easily achieve that financial independence. So, so, yeah, so I think it's a it's an exciting journey that I'm trying to do so far. Yeah. I really love that. Truly a go getter from the start.
00:19:20:13 - 00:19:48:06 Unknown And for contacts like 1500 might not sound like a lot for us or Australian listeners, but in Vietnam, like, that's like life changing money that people, could create a lot of things with. So obviously with my money, you've landed amazing partnership with major fund managers like Vet Teen Capital and IDG getting that first big partner on board is often one of the hardest challenge.
00:19:48:07 - 00:20:11:21 Unknown So how did you do it for? For myself, it's definitely not, you know, about like, calling. I think it's important that, you know, you leverage the existing relationships that you have. So in my network definitely open doors. But I believe that, you know, obviously, like your network and relationships can get you that first meeting. But being able to bring value and proving that you can bring value to the table and execution really matter more than anything.
00:20:11:21 - 00:20:40:10 Unknown So, you know, we handle everything from, you know, the tech stack that the tech processes, which is, you know, customer onboarding to servicing and to also do marketing and sales to the fund manager products and also just leaving the fund manager to do what they do best, which is, you know, managing your customers investments. And I feel like you'll be able to demonstrate that, and proving that, you know, my money can bring value to the table and obviously bring in revenue for, for fund managers is what got us the deal.
00:20:40:16 - 00:21:05:21 Unknown So a key lesson like I've mentioned is that, you know, relationships get you the meeting, but it's really important that you, you know, you obviously you have to be able to communicate what you can bring to the table is what's important to be able to help you seal that deal. Yeah. I really love that. And it seems like my money's doing amazingly well, but every startup hits roadblocks.
00:21:05:21 - 00:21:30:07 Unknown So what have been some of the biggest challenges that you faced with my money so far? And how did you push through? Yeah, so I think there's a lot of challenges, but, I think the first challenge that we face was that, you know, especially in the fintech space and financial services in Vietnam, being able to, you know, building that trust, to the market is very, is, is is very important.
00:21:30:07 - 00:21:52:04 Unknown But also as a challenge for especially newer startups and fintech trying to enter the space. So I think people are, Vietnamese people are naturally cautious when it comes to, you know, new financial products, especially with so many new platforms emerging. So the challenge was convincing users that, you know, my money is a credible solution and it's useful long term financial planning really took time.
00:21:52:04 - 00:22:13:12 Unknown So we tackle this by being as transparent as possible about our partnerships with our fund managers. So fund managers, you know, focusing on your customer investments. And we handle the tech stack and, you know, we're doing the marketing and sales to the fund managers. I think it's important to be transparent of how our model works and understanding where the money is being invested into is important.
00:22:13:14 - 00:22:43:16 Unknown I think another challenge is that obviously bridging that gap between, you know, traditional finance and technology, so many investment products in Vietnam are that especially with managed funds, they're designed for institutional or high net worth investors. And adapting that concept to everyday investor is also, whilst also keeping the process seamless is very it's a big learning curve for myself, my team, you know, obviously we have to make sure that, you know, even the everyday investors can get access to those, those products.
00:22:43:16 - 00:23:03:17 Unknown So designing the product was a challenge, but also making sure that the platform integrates smoothly with the infrastructure of the fund managers and how they operate is also another challenge as well. And I think the last challenge that I found is I think not just, you know, obviously in the fintech space, but I think with any startup, scaling is also an ongoing challenge.
00:23:03:17 - 00:23:29:01 Unknown So we've been fortunate to have early traction. But growing that user base and getting people more comfortable, with investing, is still an ongoing effort to this day. I think that's why we wanted to focus on and double down into and, you know, obviously like product simplicity, and making sure that, you know, every touchpoint from onboarding to customer investments to withdrawals is, as you know, frictionless as possible.
00:23:29:03 - 00:23:59:00 Unknown Yeah, I love that you're really thinking about everything. And hopefully, like, appearances in podcasts like this could also help with explaining a little bit about kind of my moneys ethos, how the funds are managed and how how everything works. And yeah, what is next for my money in 2025? Any exciting updates or features you should follow us socials, to get updates on, what we're building and my money.
00:23:59:00 - 00:24:15:21 Unknown But no. But, to be honest, I think to 2025, it's going to be an exciting year for us. And you know, just being able to launch just one year ago, almost one year, the, our birthday or our launch date is on the 29th of March. So I think it's still a month away, but I think this year.
00:24:15:23 - 00:24:43:06 Unknown Yeah, it's it's, it's been quite quick. I didn't realize that, you know, it's it's only been one year. Yeah. It's only been one year. So while the team has accomplished so much. Yeah. Honestly, you know, obviously, I think that first milestone, that one year old birthday, I think my money's like my babies, you know, it's, you know, it's it's an exciting time and a very important milestone, but this year is going to be quite exciting for us because we're we're planning to scale the platform by right now.
00:24:43:06 - 00:25:06:05 Unknown We have the migrated my cash, but we want to be able to introduce more goal based investing features so that, you know, making investing easier for, you know, V2 investors or whether or not you're planning for a wedding, a house buy house, or just retirement planning. We want to be able to bring that goal based features and have customized portfolios for each of those goals to help people plan for their financial futures better.
00:25:06:07 - 00:25:29:14 Unknown But we're also because as we're scaling the platform, we also want to expand our network and be able to work with more fund managers to originate products with them. So it's going to be delivering more financial products, as well as being able to have goal based investing features. But we're also exploring ways and how we can integrate AI into making investing more personalized and giving more personalized recommendations.
00:25:29:14 - 00:26:04:13 Unknown So the vision for us is that we want to make investing as effortless as possible. So, you know, people can set their goals. And, you know, we help we provide the technology to be able to help our everyday investors get their well, I'm sold. If I have any funds in Vietnam, I would totally invest with my money. Really nice to be able to, you know, obviously talking to yourself and you know, sure, obviously the challenges and you know, the not just the wins but also the challenges of building a startup, especially as an early stage founder and, in Vietnam and sharing that, like, I feel like a lot of people can relate to the
00:26:04:13 - 00:26:26:02 Unknown same experiences, but it's just my own personal journey and it's still going on this day, and it's important just to keep pushing through. This will will happen. But, you know, being able to be resilient and, you know, push through to all those challenges is a very important skill that you need to have. So, yeah, so I think, you know, it's great to be able to share my experiences today.
00:26:26:02 - 00:26:32:18 Unknown You.
00:26:32:18 - 00:26:46:00 Unknown if you want to check out more early stage founder stories, you can check out this playlist. Until next time, do hit the like and subscribe button. It really helps out the channel and helps us continue to deliver these stories to you and to more people out there.
00:26:46:02 - 00:26:48:17 Unknown Okay. Bye for now.
00:29:14:20 - 00:29:24:06 Unknown Today we sit down with the CEO of My Money as she talks about building in one of the most highly regulated industries in Vietnam, where the rules are often unclear.