Viet Nam-based investment fund Indochina Capital will invest in the Toong co-working space and become a major shareholder of the collective workspace operator, the two sides said in a joint statement on Monday.

This is also the first investment made by a private equity firm in the domestic co-working space business industry.

The funding by Indochina Capital will help Toong create more co-working places that are modern and civilised, bringing more benefits to companies and individuals in Viet Nam.

The fund’s founder and CEO, Peter Ryder, will join Toong’s management board along with the two founders of Toong – Doan Viet Dai Tu and Duong Do.

Peter said the partnership between Indochina Capital and Toong will help the latter expand its market by taking full advantage of Indochina Capital’s expertise in project design, management and implementation.

Toong is both a partner and a potential client targeted for Indochina’s key project, he said, adding that Toong’s design and brand will be integrated into real estate development platform ICC-Kajima’s lifestyle project chain.

Established in August 2015, Toong is the first business to develop large-scale co-working spaces in Viet Nam and promote the development of the shared workplace platforms in the country.

The co-working platform developer succeeded in raising funds from investors to expand its network to three locations in Ha Noi, HCM City and Da Nang.

Following seven months of operation, Toong succeeded in raising capital from Openasia – an investment private equity firm that has entered seven industries in Viet Nam – to raise its total workplaces to five, covering a total area of 6,000sq.m. — VNS