UVC: Binh Tran from Ascend Vietnam Ventures on the founding story of Klout, his investment in Axie Infinity, building a culture that serve as a magnet to attract exceptional performers and the one skill to do right by your investors, customers & team
Understanding VC is a deep dive on how Venture Capitalists work. In this episode, I talk to Binh Tran, Co-Founder and General Partner at Ascend Vietnam Ventures, a seed stage venture capital firm focused on the emerging Vietnamese startup ecosystem. Binh tells us how passionate he is about software development which is essentially a fusion of science, maths, and creativity. He further reflects on how he came about investing in Axie Infinity, currently the world’s most successful blockchain game. He also imparts some advice for up and coming founders to correctly discern the requisites of startup building, and what it takes to be a founder who can lead people who are more talented than himself. He also emphasizes the worth of a successful partnership between co-founders which can turn the fates of a startup in the increasingly competitive south-east asian market which is on a certain path of growth.
This episode will answer:
- The founding story of Klout, “a Google for people”, where Binh was a co-founder
- Binh’s participation in pioneering the Vietnam startup ecosystem
- Why does Binh think that the Southeast Asia tech industry has a promising future?
- How did Binh become one of the first investors of Axie Infinity, currently the most successful blockchain game in the world?
- Being a founder, how can you employ and lead people who are smarter than yourself?
- Why does Binh attribute immense importance to culture-building and expansion? How do founders build cultures that serve as a magnet to attract exceptional performers?
- What are the differences between the story founders must present to their employees, customers, and investors in order to garner faith and interest?
- How can you hit the sweet spot when it comes to time invested in fundraising? How can you optimize operations and fundraising simultaneously?
- Why is fudging the numbers a severely mistaken technique to impress investors during fundraising? Can it bring any benefit at all?
About
Binh Tran is the co-founder and General Partner of Ascend Vietnam Ventures, a seed stage venture capital firm investing in Southeast Asia's next wave of market leading tech companies that begin their journey in Vietnam. Prior to Ascend Vietnam Ventures, he was the co-founder and General Partner of 500 Startups Vietnam, the first tech focused seed stage VC firm in Vietnam. Prior to that, Binh co-founded Klout, the Kleiner Perkins-backed social analytics company in San Francisco that was acquired for over USD$200M. Binh has completed over 50 seed investments since 2012 and currently resides in Ho Chi Minh City.
Binh Tran
General Partner at Ascend Vietnam Ventures
Binh Tran is the co-founder and General Partner of Ascend Vietnam Ventures, a seed stage venture capital firm investing in Southeast Asia's next wave of market leading tech companies that begin their journey in Vietnam. Prior to Ascend Vietnam Ventures, he was the co-founder and General Partner of 500 Startups Vietnam, the first tech focused seed stage VC firm in Vietnam. Prior to that, Binh co-founded Klout, the Kleiner Perkins-backed social analytics company in San Francisco that was acquired for over USD$200M. Binh has completed over 50 seed investments since 2012 and currently resides in Ho Chi Minh City.
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