Wealth-Being #18 | Uỷ thác quản lý tài sản - nên hay không? | Nguyễn Thành Trung, CEO Finsuccess

Key Concepts

Financial Win: The ultimate goal of financial freedom and happiness.
VN Index: The benchmark index for the Vietnamese stock market.
FTSE Russell: A global index provider that upgraded Vietnam to emerging market status.
Individual Investors: The primary drivers of liquidity in the Vietnamese stock market.
Investment Psychology: The emotional and cognitive biases that affect investment decisions.
Market Timing: The attempt to predict and capitalize on short-term market movements.
Diversification: Spreading investments across different asset classes to reduce risk.
Conviction: A strong belief in an investment's underlying value and potential.
Asset Management: The process of managing financial assets to meet investment goals.
Wealth Management: A broader concept encompassing asset management, financial planning, and estate planning.
Dollar-Cost Averaging (DCA): Investing a fixed amount of money at regular intervals, regardless of market conditions.
ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance): Investment criteria that consider a company's sustainability and ethical practices.
Family Office: A private wealth management advisory firm that serves ultra-high-net-worth individuals.

Market Overview and Investor Behavior

The Vietnamese stock market has experienced significant volatility, with the VN Index reaching historical highs and then undergoing substantial corrections. Despite the FTSE Russell upgrade to secondary emerging market status, which signals potential for increased foreign capital, individual investors currently dominate market liquidity. This dynamic presents both opportunities and challenges, as individual investment decisions have a growing impact.

Market Performance and Trends

Recent Performance: The Vietnamese stock market has been dynamic, with the VN Index trading at high levels and even surpassing historical peaks in the latter half of 2025.
FTSE Russell Upgrade: Vietnam's reclassification by FTSE Russell has generated considerable optimism regarding the return of foreign capital.
Individual Investor Dominance: Individual investors are the primary source of market liquidity, acting as the main driving force.
Market Volatility: Since mid-September, the market has seen significant fluctuations, with the VN Index dropping over 200 points at times. Some stock groups have experienced declines of 40-50%, even when the broader market correction was around 10%.
Foreign Investor Outflow: Contrary to expectations, foreign investors have been net sellers in Vietnam for the past 3-5 years, with outflows of tens of billions of dollars, including nearly $5 billion year-to-date.
Gold Market: Gold has been a strong performer, with returns of 80-90% year-to-date and doubling in the past year. However, supply is currently limited, with daily purchase restrictions in place.
Digital Assets: Younger generations (post-8X) are increasingly shifting towards digital assets like stocks and cryptocurrencies, moving away from traditional assets like gold and real estate.

Investor Psychology and Challenges

A significant portion of individual investors in Vietnam face challenges due to psychological biases and a lack of a structured investment approach.

High Loss Rate: A CEO of a top-5 securities company stated that 90% of investors lose money within a two-year period.
Shortened Market Cycles: Vietnam's market cycles have shortened from approximately 10 years (e.g., 2008-2018) to about 2 years, with significant corrections occurring every two years (e.g., 2018, 2020 Covid, 2022 bond crisis, 2024 tariff issues).
Market Timing Fallacy:
- Pessimism during Downturns: Investors tend to become extremely pessimistic and disengage when the market falls sharply, closing trading apps and developing a dislike for investing. This is precisely when opportunities for deep discounts arise.
- Optimism during Rallies: Conversely, when the market booms and liquidity is high (e.g., VN Index at 1800 points), investors become enthusiastic, open apps, and invest more as prices rise, often buying at the peak.
Lack of Investment Methodology: A significant majority (90-95%) of individual investors lack a proper investment methodology, knowledge, or mindset.
Leverage Misuse: The use of margin (leverage) exacerbates losses. Investors often increase leverage as the market rises, leading to rapid depletion of capital when prices fall, even with moderate market corrections.
Investor Awareness: Only an estimated 10-20% of investors recognize these psychological traps and flawed methodologies. The majority (70-80%) remain unaware and continue their old habits, partly due to the market's tendency to make investors "forgetful" of past losses.
Positive Trend: A growing segment (10-30%) of investors, particularly after market downturns, seek professional guidance due to a realization of their time, knowledge, and resource limitations.

Building a Sound Investment Mindset and Strategy

The core of successful investing lies in developing a sound mindset and a robust methodology, rather than solely focusing on market timing.

Defining "Correct" Investment Thinking

Beyond Timing: "Correct" investing is not about always being right on timing but about having the right mindset.
Key Components of a Correct Mindset:
- Realistic Expectations: Having appropriate expectations about potential returns and risks.
- Meticulous Methodology: Employing a well-defined and disciplined approach.
- Conviction: Developing a strong belief in the underlying value of investments.
The "Conviction" Principle:
- Focus on the Business: For individual investors, the principle is to view each stock as representing a business.
- Criteria for a Good Business/Stock:
  - Good management.
  - Strong business operations.
  - Healthy financial standing.
  - Attractive valuation (trading at a reasonable or cheap price).
- Realistic Return Expectations: A reasonable expectation for individual investors is 15-20% annually, avoiding overly high expectations that can lead to mistakes.

The Role of FinSet and Professional Guidance

FinSet was founded to address the gap in structured investment guidance for individual investors in Vietnam.

Addressing a Societal Problem: The startup aims to solve the problem of individual investors struggling with market volatility and a lack of expertise.
Core Mission: To help clients achieve good and sustainable investment performance, even during market downturns.
Target Clientele:
- Working Professionals: Individuals with regular income but limited time and knowledge for in-depth investing. FinSet helps them plan and diversify their portfolios for better returns. This includes both young professionals starting their investment journey and retirees seeking stable income.
- Business Owners/Organizations: Traditional businesses often have low returns from savings or currency holdings. FinSet offers advisory services to improve their investment performance.
Minimum Investment Threshold: FinSet typically requires a minimum investment of 300 million VND to ensure tailored services can be effectively delivered. However, they also support clients with smaller amounts through savings plans and offer educational resources through academies and communities.
Importance of Understanding Client Needs: FinSet emphasizes understanding each client's unique financial situation, risk tolerance, and goals before recommending any investment strategy. This is a departure from traditional advisory models that often push specific portfolios without understanding the client.
Investment Policy Statement (IPS): A crucial first step in the advisory process is creating an IPS, which outlines investment objectives, risk tolerance, and time horizon. This guides all subsequent investment decisions.
Tailored Advice: FinSet provides customized investment plans, recognizing that not all clients are suited for stock market investing. Some may be better off with simple savings accounts if their risk tolerance is very low.
Long-Term Perspective: The firm advocates for long-term investing, emphasizing that the Vietnamese stock market has historically provided average returns of 11-13% annually.

Balancing Risk and Return

Risk Tolerance Assessment: Understanding a client's capacity and willingness to accept risk is paramount.
Asset Allocation: Diversifying across asset classes (e.g., safe-haven assets, cash flow-generating assets, growth assets, and high-growth assets) is crucial for managing risk and achieving long-term goals.
Example of Asset Allocation (for High Net Worth): A study of 500 investment funds managing over $2.5 trillion USD suggests the following allocation for individuals with over $1 million USD in net worth:
- Safe Haven Assets (20-30%): Real estate, vehicles, and assets for family living.
- Cash Flow Assets (30-40%): Commercial real estate, bonds, and dividend-paying funds for security.
- Growth Assets (20-30%): Stocks, speculative real estate (second homes).
- High-Growth Assets (10-20%): Venture capital, startups, cryptocurrencies, highly speculative real estate.
Adapting to Market Conditions: Investment strategies need to be flexible and adapt to short-term market conditions while maintaining a long-term focus.
DCA as a Strategy: Dollar-Cost Averaging is recommended to mitigate market timing risks and build wealth steadily over time.

The Distinction Between Investing and Asset Management

Investing: Focuses on achieving good returns within a specific asset class (e.g., stocks).
Asset Management: A broader discipline involving the strategic allocation of assets across multiple classes to meet overall financial goals.
Wealth Management: An even more comprehensive approach that includes asset management, financial planning, tax optimization, insurance, and estate planning.

Future Outlook for Vietnam's Asset Management Market

Government Support: The Vietnamese government has ambitious targets to increase the number of individuals utilizing professional investment advisory services, aiming for a five-fold increase in the next five years.
Market Potential: The market for asset management services in Vietnam is expected to grow significantly, driven by increasing GDP per capita, a growing middle class, and a rising number of high-net-worth individuals.
Gap in Services: There is a substantial gap in the market for comprehensive advisory services catering to a broad range of individual investors.
Key Principles for Success:
- Delivering Consistent and Sustainable Returns: Meeting client expectations for performance.
- Adhering to Investment Principles: Maintaining a sound investment philosophy and discipline.
- Continuous Learning and Adaptation: Staying updated with market changes and evolving strategies.
- Transparency and Integrity: Building trust through honest communication and ethical practices.

Key Takeaways for Investors

Reduce Emotional Decision-Making, Increase Rationality: Develop a strong investment principle based on logic rather than emotion.
Continuous Learning and Self-Development: Investment strategies need to be constantly refined and adapted to changing market conditions.
Long-Term Perspective: The Vietnamese capital market and asset management sector are poised for significant growth. Investors should adopt a long-term view and consider wealth management early on.