Cheng family scion helps Chiaphua focus on Vietnam

Jonathan Cheng, a member of the third generation of the family that runs 110-year-old conglomerate Chiaphua Group, manages the family’s US$100 million Jen Capital Vietnam Property Fund.

He previously had private equity and corporate finance roles at Lehman Brothers in New York and Hong Kong , Peregrine Direct Investment and Capital Z Asia.

In 1986 Vietnam launched a political and economic renewal campaign (Doi Moi) that introduced reforms intended to facilitate the transition from a centrally planned economy to a form of market socialism officially termed “socialist-oriented market economy”.

Doi Moi combined economic planning with free-market incentives and encouraged the establishment of private businesses, including foreign-owned enterprises, in the production of consumer goods and foreign investment.

The Cheng family ventured into Vietnam, believing its open door policy could offer a golden opportunity to expand beyond Hong Kong, and became the first Hong Kong developer in the country.

After spending about nine years as an investment banker, Cheng decided to join the family business and focus on Vietnam property development and investment.