PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Founder & Director
FUNDAMENTA CAPITAL LAB
"An initiative sharing insights of sustainable investing and offer collective investment opportunities"
If my early years taught me how to observe finance and my high school years trained me to think with structure, then Fundamenta Capital Lab was where I learned to put thought into action. I have always believed that knowledge only matters when it is shared, and finance only matters when it creates value for others. That is why I didn’t want to study finance alone. I wanted to create a place where young people could learn to invest responsibly and grow together.
I started with nothing: no office, no funding, no formal backing. I built the curriculum myself and hosted monthly webinars and in-person workshops on fundamental investing. I taught financial statement analysis, portfolio risk management, and equity evaluation using real market data. But I didn’t want this to be just another classroom. I wanted real accountability, so I founded a collective investment fund with seven members. Each member contributed real capital and made real investment decisions. We met weekly to analyze market movements, debate strategy, and execute trades. After nine months, our portfolio saw a 68% return on investment, not through luck, but through discipline, research, and conviction.
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Profit alone feels meaningless. I didn’t want our fund to end as just numbers on a spreadsheet. I wanted it to make a difference in real lives. From our first profit, I set up a charity fund for the homeless in Hanoi, launching the 365 Meals program, which provides 365 meals a year for people in need. I printed the meal cards myself and collaborated with popular restaurants like Binh Dan Hanoi, Thanh Ha Traditional Pho, and Ha Long Bread. I negotiated prices and directly handed out cards to over 500 people living in tough areas such as under Chuong Duong Bridge, Lo Duc Hamlet, Ngo Si Lien Street, and under Long Bien Bridge.
I worked with more than 20 volunteers who were committed to joining each trip. Together, we distributed cards, handed out meals, listened to their stories, and connected with the homeless. This was the first time I truly realized that finance is not just a tool for making a profit. When used correctly, it can also provide healing, uplift spirits, and create positive, lasting change in the community. It reinforced my belief that financial resources, when thoughtfully applied, have the power to make a significant social impact.
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Co-Founder & Head of Finance
VANCY BAR
A retail start-up providing non-alcoholic drinks with an attractive, untouched scenery of highland towns, aiming to promote local delicacies to young people
If Fundamenta Capital Lab taught me the purpose of finance, Vancy Bar showed me the reality of business. I didn’t want to just analyze companies; I wanted to create one, even from scratch. The idea came to me during a trip to Moc Chau, where I experienced mountain cacao and herbal tea so authentic that I wondered why Vietnamese flavors couldn’t become a brand cherished by young people.
So, my friends and I launched Vancy Bar, a mobile non-alcoholic beverage project. We had no store, no investors, just an old van and determination. We renovated the van by hand and turned it into a street café. I handled finance and operations: planning cash flow, setting prices, and tracking daily break-even points. The challenges were tough, including rainy days with no sales, inventory errors, and negative cash flow; however, quitting was never an option. I restructured our approach by streamlining operations: cutting waste, optimizing supply, and leveraging free social media marketing to grow our presence.
After two months, Vancy Bar generated $1,700 in revenue and a 42% return on investment. But the real success was not financial; it was my growth as an entrepreneur. I learned to act quickly without being reckless, adjust while staying focused, and create something meaningful even when resources were scarce.
Project Management Trainee
X-CULTURE
After Vancy Bar, I sought global opportunities to challenge myself. I joined X-Culture, an international business program with over 6,000 participants from 100+ countries, where I developed global leadership skills. Leading a team from Italy, India, Mexico, Romania, and Vietnam, we created a market expansion strategy for a European startup entering Asia. Despite the challenges of different time zones and cultures, I built our workflow, organized meetings, and ensured progress through conflict resolution. I led market analysis using PESTLE, Porter’s Five Forces, and risk-return evaluations, resulting in a strategy praised by the client for its practical, controlled-risk approach. Earning the X-Culture Global Collaboration Certificate, I learned that finance is not just about analysis but about making decisions that transcend cultural and operational boundaries.
Research Assistant
BRIGHT FUTURE & TECHNOLOGY JSC
There was a time when I thought finance only existed in the marketplace, where numbers change every second and decisions are based on profit and loss. Later, I discovered another side of finance, its scientific foundation. Behind every market reaction, there are mechanisms. Behind every business outcome, there are causes. Not everyone in this field has the patience to look for those answers, but I did. That is why I turned to academic research.
I applied for the Research Assistant position at Bright Future Education & Technology JSC not to boost my resume, but because I wanted to answer a key question: why do some financial strategies succeed while others fail, even under similar conditions? I wanted to base my thinking on evidence and data, not assumptions.
I never expected to be one of only two high school students chosen from 314 applicants to join a research project under Professor Đinh Văn Hoàng. The topic was challenging and technical: “How digital knowledge absorptive capacity enhances sustainable competitive advantages of emerging market manufacturing SMEs.”
Beneath its academic language, the research tackled a real challenge in the era of digital transformation: why do some companies excel with technology while others struggle, even when they have access to the same tools?
I participated in the entire research cycle. I distributed surveys to 980 SMEs, screened and removed 298 invalid responses, prepared 481 valid datasets, and performed PLS-SEM to test the structural model. I also contributed to the fsQCA analysis to identify the factors that lead to sustainable competitive advantage. When I found inconsistencies in how academic terms were translated, I suggested using a two-round independent translation protocol to increase reliability. The team later adopted this change.
On March 2, 2025, our paper was submitted to the International Journal of Innovation and Learning. For me, this moment meant more than just publication. It was a turning point and confirmed the type of finance I want to pursue: I don’t want to just practice finance. I want to understand it deeply, fundamentally, and truthfully.