Les Pdg of VietJet Air, Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao, of Vinamilk, Mai Kieu Lien, and of Sacombank, Nguyen Duc Thach Diem, ont été honorées par le magazine Fortune on this year’s list of Asia’s most powerful women.
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The American business magazine Fortune has just announced the ranking of “Asia’s Most Influential Women 2024”, covering various sectors such as finance, energy, transportation, food and beverage, as well as hospitality, in which three Vietnamese.
The ranking honors women who have transformed their businesses and introduced innovations to drive industrial growth and inspire the next generation of leaders. It is therefore not an all-out influence but only in the business field.
First Vietnamese self-made woman
Au numéro 66 de la liste will follow Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao.
She is the founder and president of VietJet Air, Vietnam’s first private commercial airline. Ms Thao launched this low-cost airline in 2011, with the aim of making flights accessible both domestically and internationally.
According to Fortune, since its inception, Vietjet has recorded rapid growth, carrying 25.3 million passengers last year, surpassing the 24.1 million carried by Vietnam Airlines. The company has particularly developed its international lines, with 7.6 million passengers transported last year, an increase of 183% compared to 2022.
Nguyên Thi Phuong Thao is often considered Vietnam’s first self-made female billionaire. In addition to her success as a leader, she is one of the most prominent figures of the Vietnamese economic elite, with a fortune estimated at 2.9 billion USD according to the magazine Forbesmaking her the only female billionaire in the country for several years now.
Climb the ladder
Nguyên Duc Thach Diêm, CEO of Saigon Thuong Tin Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Sacombank), ranked 71st on Fortune’s list. She joined the bank in 2002, working in various departments including accounting, credit, customer service, and debt management.
With more than 20 years of experience at Sacombank, including 11 years in management positions, she was appointed Managing Director in 2017, elected member of the Board of Directors in 2018, and permanent Vice-President in 2022.
Under his leadership, Sacombank carried out a seven-year restructuring process to reduce bad debts, with total assets now reaching USD 27 billion. Currently, the bank has a market capitalization of 64,000 billion VND.
Exceptional influence
The last representative of Vietnam on the list is Mai Kiêu Liên, CEO of Vinamilk, born in 1953 in Paris and originally from Hâu Giang, in the South of Vietnam.
In 1957, his family, made up of patriotic intellectuals, returned to Vietnam. After being sent by the Vietnamese state to the Soviet Union to study milk processing, she became an engineer at the Southern Milk and Coffee Company, Vinamilk’s predecessor.
Since 1992, she has served as CEO of Vinamilk, which she transformed into the largest agrifood company listed on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HoSE), with a market capitalization of 6 billion USD. Vinamilk, formerly a public company, went public in 2003.
In 15 years, under his leadership, the company has developed a network of 13 farms that meet international standards and manages more than 160,000 cows, producing more than a million liters of milk per day. Vinamilk is now one of the world’s 40 largest dairy companies by revenue and is the 6th most valuable dairy brand in the world at USD 3 billion, according to the UK’s Brand Finance.
The company currently supplies 250 types of products and exports them to 60 countries and territories, with total revenue in 2023 reaching 60.479 billion VND (2.37 billion USD).
Mai Kiêu Liên has been recognized by international organizations such as Nikkei and Forbes Asia for her outstanding influence in business and contributions to the Vietnamese economy.
Dan Thanh/CVN