Pham Nhat Vuong, Southeast Asia's Richest Person, Owner of VinFast and Green SM Taxi
The name Pham Nhat Vuong has garnered increasing attention in recent times, not only due to the surge in his wealth but also because the market capitalisation of the business empire he built through Vingroup continues to soar.
As of early April 2026, Forbes Real Time Billionaires recorded Vuong’s wealth at $24.5 billion, equivalent to approximately Rp 423.1 trillion (assuming an exchange rate of Rp 17,270 per US dollar), propelling him past Prajogo Pangestu to become Southeast Asia’s richest person.
In Forbes’ 2026 annual billionaires list, he ranks 93rd globally.
According to VnExpress, as cited on Tuesday (28/4/2026), Vingroup’s market capitalisation reached 587.1 trillion Vietnamese dong, or about $22.5 billion, equivalent to roughly Rp 388.6 trillion, making it the fourth-largest public company in Southeast Asia, behind Singapore’s three giants: DBS Group, OCBC, and UOB.
This rise has also boosted the value of Vuong’s holdings, which he controls through various affiliated entities.
Behind this wealth surge, Vuong’s journey began far removed from the property and electric vehicle businesses now synonymous with his name.
Pham Nhat Vuong was born in Hanoi, Vietnam, on 5 August 1968. He studied geology at the Moscow Geological Prospecting Institute in Russia, during a time when Vietnam maintained close ties with the Soviet bloc.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Vuong moved to Ukraine and started a small business in Kharkiv. From there, he founded Technocom in the early 1990s, a producer of instant noodles under the Mivina brand that later became popular in Ukraine.
This business served as the springboard for his fortune. Forbes notes that Technocom was sold to Nestle in 2010, with the proceeds providing capital to expand his ventures in Vietnam.
Meanwhile, according to academic Huong Le Thu, as quoted in Time, Vuong is one of Vietnam’s visionary entrepreneurs, even calling him the “Elon Musk of Vietnam.”
Upon returning to Vietnam, Vuong began with the resort business through Vinpearl, before expanding into property via Vincom.
These two entities later evolved into Vingroup, a conglomerate that now operates in real estate, retail, healthcare, education, technology, and electric vehicles.