VinFast — Vingroup's Car Company From Hai Phong to Nasdaq

VinFast at a glance

Vingroup and the founding

Phạm Nhật Vượng, born on 5 August 1968, built his first business in Ukraine. After moving to Kharkiv in the early 1990s he opened an instant-noodle restaurant and then began producing instant noodles; the Mivina brand became popular in Ukraine. His company Technocom, founded in 1993, was sold to Nestlé in 2009 for US$150 million. Vingroup grew out of Technocom and his Vietnamese businesses Vincom and Vinpearl, whose first projects were the Vinpearl Nha Trang resort in 2003 and Vincom Ba Trieu in 2004. Listed in Ho Chi Minh City in 2007 and based in Hanoi, it is one of the largest conglomerates in Vietnam, with interests in housing, resorts, healthcare and education.

VinFast was created as Vingroup's car subsidiary in June 2017. In July 2017 it published 20 design sketches from Italdesign Giugiaro, Pininfarina, Torino Design and Zagato, and more than 60,000 people voted on them. Ground was broken on 2 September 2017 on a site of 3.35 km² on Cat Hai Island near Hai Phong, and the factory was finished in 21 months. In early 2018 the company announced an initial investment of US$1.5 billion in 2018 for its first phase.

The first cars: Lux and Fadil

In 2018 an agreement with General Motors gave VinFast the exclusive right to distribute Chevrolet in Vietnam and planned the transfer of GM's Hanoi factory. VinFast GmbH was set up in Frankfurt on 31 July 2018 to distribute parts, and in November 2018 the company launched its first electric scooter, the Klara.

In the autumn of 2018 the Lux A2.0 saloon and Lux SA2.0 SUV were shown at the Paris Motor Show. The Lux A2.0 was built on the platform of the BMW 5 Series (F10), with a body reworked by Pininfarina, a 2.0-litre BMW N20 turbocharged four-cylinder and an eight-speed automatic. Pilot production began in March 2019 and full production in September 2019 at Hai Phong, and the Lux A2.0 received five stars from ASEAN NCAP in September 2019. In the first quarter of 2020 VinFast ranked fifth among car brands in Vietnam by sales.

Electric-only and the VF 8

The change to electric cars came quickly. On 25 December 2021 the first 100 VF e34 crossovers were delivered in Vietnam, the first electric cars built and sold in the country. In early 2022 VinFast announced it would stop making combustion-engined vehicles altogether. Reuters reported that it sold 7,400 cars in 2022, all in Vietnam.

The VinFast VF 8, a mid-size electric SUV styled by Pininfarina, was presented in January 2022. The first generation has two motors and all-wheel drive: 260 kW (353 PS) and 500 Nm in the Eco version, 300 kW (408 PS) and 620 Nm in the Plus. The battery has 82 kWh of usable capacity, or 87.7 kWh in the extended-range version, and WLTP range is 399 to 470 km. That works out at roughly 4.9 to 5.4 km per kWh, a figure that can be compared with other electric cars in the EV range and battery data. In 2023 Euro NCAP scored it 76% for adult occupants, 89% for children, 77% for pedestrians and 79% for safety assist.

Deliveries began in Vietnam on 10 September 2022, and six showrooms opened in California in July 2022. In the United States reviewers were largely critical of its ride, steering and driver-assistance systems; Road & Track's Mack Hogan said it had the worst ride and steering of any car he had reviewed, while MotorTrend praised its interior space and braking.

Nasdaq, new plants and losses

In March 2022 VinFast announced a plant in North Carolina, with a planned investment of US$4 billion in 2022 and capacity for 150,000 vehicles a year. The opening was later postponed to 2028. In April 2022 the legal headquarters moved to Singapore. A merger with the special-purpose company Black Spade Capital was announced in July 2023, valuing VinFast at US$23 billion in 2023. It closed on 15 August 2023, and the shares began trading on Nasdaq under the ticker VFS.

The company aimed for 50,000 sales in 2023 and delivered about 35,000. In 2023 it reported revenue of US$1.150 billion and a net loss of US$2.366 billion; the operating loss for 2023 was US$1.667 billion. It had 13,953 employees. Phạm Nhật Vượng became chief executive in January 2024. In November 2024 Vingroup pledged loans of up to US$1.38 billion and Vượng a further US$1.97 billion to help VinFast reach break-even, a target later moved beyond 2027.

Expansion continued in Asia. The VF 3 drew 27,649 orders in Vietnam within 66 hours in May 2024. A plant in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, India, begun in February 2024, opened on 4 August 2025 with an initial capacity of 50,000 units a year. A plant in Subang, West Java, Indonesia, opened on 15 December 2025. In the West the company moved to franchised dealers, closed its 15 company-owned stores in California in 2025 and reduced its Canadian network. In March 2026 the range was reorganised into three lines: Lac Hong for luxury cars, VF for mainstream electric cars and Green for commercial and ride-hailing use. VinFast models are listed in the VinFast catalogue, and crash-test results for other cars are in the car safety section.

VinFast timeline

Landmark VinFast models

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