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Politics & Risk

Briefing

1. Need to Know2. Risks & Constraints3. Money Matters4. Local Knowledge5. Political Weather6. ItinerariesQuestions
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Fresh produce at a market in Hanoi

Section 6 of 6

Itineraries

The critical questions to ask each business around risk for each day of the trip. Balance stability with high-growth scaling.

Next: Questions

Eleven days, twelve stops

Singapore first, then Ho Chi Minh City. Every stop shows one risk from this briefing; bring its question into the room.

SingaporeHCMCMekong Delta
Marina Bay, Singapore, at night

Singapore3 to 7 Nov

  1. Tue 3

    –

  2. Wed 4

    • Emerson
    • Swapaholic

  3. Thu 5

    • Mastercard
    • S&P Global

  4. Fri 6

    • UOB
    • US Embassy

  5. Sat 7

    –

Ho Chi Minh City skyline beside the Saigon River

Ho Chi Minh City8 to 13 Nov

  1. Sun 8

    –

  2. Mon 9

    • VNG
    • Vietcetera

  3. Tue 10

    • Marou
    • Google Vietnam

  4. Wed 11

    • Crocs factory

  5. Thu 12

    • Mekong Delta

  6. Fri 13

    –

SocietyFDITrade

Singapore: the hub and its costs

11/4–11/5

Stainless steel tank, pipes and automated valves in an industrial plant

Wed 4 Nov, 9:00

Emerson

Industrial automation

Runs its Asia Pacific process business from Singapore.

Ask

How did the US tariffs and your China exposure change where you put people and inventory?
A tree-lined shopping street in Singapore

Wed 4 Nov, 11:00

Swapaholic

Circular fashion

A B Corp swap shop on Orchard Road, in one of the world’s most expensive cities.

Ask

What do rent and work passes do to a small company’s margins, and what would you do differently in Vietnam?
A hand tapping a smartphone on a card payment terminal

Thu 5 Nov, 9:00

Mastercard

Payments and AI

Asia Pacific headquarters, and the site of its first live AI-agent payment.

Ask

When Vietnam proposed a 49% foreign cap on e-payment firms, how did you respond?
EconomyTradeIndustries

Singapore: money and its rules

11/5–11/6

Office towers of Singapore's Marina Bay and Downtown Core reflected in the bay in daylight

Thu 5 Nov, 11:00

S&P Global

Credit ratings and markets

Rates sovereign risk from Marina Bay. Singapore is AAA; Vietnam is BB+ at Fitch.

Ask

What would move Vietnam to investment grade, and what would cost Singapore its AAA?
Office towers at Raffles Place, Singapore's financial district

Fri 6 Nov, 9:00

UOB

Banking and AI

A S$572 billion bank, supervised by a regulator that fined nine institutions for laundering breaches in 2025.

Ask

How is UOB leveraging AI and automation to meet these heightened regulatory standards without causing friction or long delays for legitimate foreign corporate accounts?
The Embassy of the United States on Napier Road, Singapore

Fri 6 Nov, 11:30

US Embassy

Commercial section

Supports US firms using Singapore as their regional hub.

Ask

Which US companies are moving Vietnam-facing work to Singapore because of the tariffs, and which the other way?
GovernmentFDICorruption

Ho Chi Minh City: rules for platforms and founders

11/9–11/10

Two men in face masks using smartphones on a street in Quy Nhon, Vietnam

Mon 9 Nov, 9:30

VNG

Local big tech

Vietnam’s first unicorn, maker of Zalo, now under the July 2026 cybersecurity law.

Ask

What does the 24-hour takedown rule cost you, and is it harder for you or for Google?
Podcast microphones on boom arms beside a studio light

Mon 9 Nov, 12:00

Vietcetera

Media, over lunch

A bilingual media company founded by returning Vietnamese.

Ask

What can you publish about the anti-corruption campaign, and how do you decide?
Ripe cacao pods hanging from a tree branch

Tue 10 Nov, 9:00

Marou

Chocolate

Two foreign founders, making here since 2011 and exporting mainly to Europe.

Ask

What did licensing, land use and getting profits out really involve?
GovernmentSecurityTrade

Ho Chi Minh City and the delta: data, tariffs, climate

11/10–11/12

Landmark 81 and surrounding high-rises beside the Saigon River, Ho Chi Minh City

Tue 10 Nov, 11:30

Google Vietnam

Tech and AI

Set up a Vietnamese company in 2025 and invoices in dong, under local data rules.

Ask

Which data now stays in Vietnam, and what changed in dealing with the Ministry of Public Security?
A worker holding a leather shoe against a buffing wheel in a shoe workshop

Wed 11 Nov, 9:00

Crocs factory

Footwear

Vietnam makes 45% of Crocs Brand shoes. The 12.5% US tariff lives on this floor.

Ask

How do you prove Vietnamese origin, and what share of inputs still comes from China?
A boat on a palm-lined waterway in the Mekong Delta

Thu 12 Nov

Mekong Delta

Rice and climate

More than half of Vietnam’s rice; saltwater reached 90 km inland in 2016.

Ask

What has changed since 2016, and what does a food or logistics company plan for now?