Can Vietnam's SOEs Manufacture a Semiconductor Industry?

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Aug. 24, 2026 –

Hanoi has tasked military-run Viettel with developing a domestic semiconductor industry. The test is whether state-owned enterprises can execute on a national industrial policy without crowding out the private sector.

By Matthew Barsing, aseanrising.com

A recent directive from Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has tasked military-run telecom company Viettel with developing the country's semiconductor industry, according to a report from Reuters. The move signals Hanoi's intent to use a state-owned enterprise (SOE) to advance its industrial policy ambitions in a high-technology sector.

Vietnam is a significant destination for foreign direct investment in electronics assembly and is attracting new interest as a hub for semiconductor packaging and testing. The government's new directive to Viettel, however, represents a push into the more complex domains of chip design and fabrication. This is a capital-intensive and high-skill endeavor that will test the execution capacity of Vietnam's state-led development model.

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