Former Gojek execs’ Vietnamese coffee startup Révi bags funding from TNB Aura, others

Vietnamese tech-enabled coffee chain Révi Coffee & Tea has raised a funding round from Singapore-based venture capital (VC) firm TNB Aura, through its TNBA Scout initiative for Vietnam, and local VCs including Touchstone Partners and AiViet Venture, DealStreetAsia has learnt.

The investment amount is understood to be around $1 million. DealStreetAsia has reached out to the company’s founder and investors for comments.

Founded by Daniel Duc Nguyen, co-founder & ex-CEO of Gojek and former chief commercial officer of e-wallet MoMo; and Linh Nguyen, co-founder & ex-chief growth officer of Gojek and former CEO of Adayroi (Vingroup’s e-commerce platform), Révi Coffee currently has seven outlets in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

The Vietnamese coffee chain market, previously dominated by well-established brands like Highlands Coffee, Trung Nguyen, The Coffee House, Phuc Long, and Starbucks Vietnam, has seen a churn in recent years with the entry of new local and international players.

In August 2022, Vietnamese retail giant Masan Group Corporation increased its stake in beverage chain Phuc Long Heritage Joint Stock Company from 51% to 85% for a consideration of $154 million, months after hiking its stake in the company from 20% to 51% for $110 million. The Vietnamese conglomerate first acquired a 20% stake in Phuc Long Heritage for $15 million in 2021.

In December 2022, Reuters reported that Jollibee Foods Corp, the biggest fast-food operator in the Philippines, was in advanced discussions to sell a minority stake in the Vietnamese coffee chain Highlands Coffee.

In 2020, Vietnamese “new retail” firm Seedcom, which owns The Coffee House, raised fresh capital from ReDefine Capital Fund, the Singapore-registered arm of China’s eWTP Technology Innovation Fund. It raised fresh funding from Thai lender Kasikornbank’s investment holding company KVision a year later.

TNB Aura was one of the most active VC investors in Vietnam last year and is looking to double down on investments in the country in the next few years. The firm has made eight investments in total in Vietnam over the past three years.

Touchstone Partners, meanwhile, is seeking to raise its second fund to continue betting on Vietnam’s burgeoning tech ecosystem. The homegrown VC firm secured the first close of its debut $50-million venture capital fund to invest in early-stage startups in 2021, roping in limited partners such as Pavilion Capital, Cercano Management (former Vulcan Capital), and other institutional investors and family offices.

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Written by: Quynh Nguyen

02 February 2024