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Vietnam’s Small Pharma Firms Face Wave of Foreign Takeovers

At the Vietnam Private Sector Economic Forum (VPSF) 2025, experts sounded the alarm over the fragmented state of Vietnam’s pharmaceutical industry. Despite the sector reaching nearly USD 8.9 billion in 2024 — the second-largest market in Southeast Asia — most domestic firms remain small, repetitive in production, and vulnerable to foreign acquisition.

Bùi Cẩm Vân, Corporate Governance Director at BuyMed, highlighted that in today’s economy, the key drivers of growth are no longer just capital, land, or labor, but also data and technology. However, when these resources are fragmented or monopolized, young and emerging firms face significant barriers. Without strong production tools, companies struggle to compete, innovate, and expand.

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Vietnam currently has around 250 pharmaceutical factories, yet most manufacture similar products, offering little differentiation. The lack of collaboration among local firms has resulted in thin profit margins and few new product launches. Compounding this issue is a protectionist mindset: many firms focus only on securing their domestic market rather than pursuing international competitiveness or investing in innovation.

As a result, Vietnamese pharma companies remain too small to negotiate with global players or to invest meaningfully in R&D. This has left the local market heavily dependent on imported drugs while consumers have fewer treatment options. The absence of national-scale champions also makes the industry more susceptible to foreign takeovers. Cases like DHG being acquired by Japan’s Taisho, Imexpharm by China’s Lizvon, and DBD with Swiss shareholder KWE show how quickly local firms are losing ground, even on home soil.

Speakers at VPSF argued that this weakness in the pharmaceutical industry mirrors broader challenges across many Vietnamese private enterprises: fragmentation, weak institutional frameworks, and lack of innovation.

To unlock the private sector’s potential, experts stressed the urgent need for a transparent, stable, and enabling regulatory environment. Lưu Thanh Mẫu, Vice President of the Vietnam Young Entrepreneurs Association, emphasized that inconsistencies in legal frameworks — particularly in relation to digital assets, data ownership, and intellectual property — are holding back growth. In addition, policies on green transition and sustainable development remain vague and underdeveloped.

Đậu Anh Tuấn, Deputy Secretary General of VCCI, added that to build a truly enabling business environment, Vietnam must stop criminalizing purely economic and civil disputes. Drawing from international practice, he argued that legal reforms should clearly separate criminal, civil, and administrative responsibilities while creating more proactive and flexible legal support mechanisms for businesses.

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