CEO of Covid-19 vaccine developer Nanogen dies at 59
Ho Nhan, CEO of Nanogen - the first Vietnamese company to conduct clinical trials for a Covid-19 vaccine, passed away on Monday at the age of 59 due to heart disease.
Ho Nhan, CEO of Nanogen. Photo courtesy of Tien phong (Vanguard) newspaper.
The news was confirmed to the media on the morning of Tuesday by Nguyen Hoang Tuan, chairman of Ho Chi Minh City-based conglomerate Son Kim Group and younger brother-in-law of Nhan.
Earlier, Nguyen Thi Son, founder of Son Kim Group and Nhan’s mother-in-law, had shared the sad news on social media. According to her, Nhan had heart problems and often said he felt "very tired," but he was "dedicated" to his work.
Born in 1966, Nhan grew up in New York and earned a Ph.D. in biotechnology from the University of Arizona. He spent many years conducting biotech research abroad before returning to Vietnam to found Nanogen Biopharmaceuticals JSC in 1997.
Over the years, he served as chairman, CEO, and legal representative of the company. In late 2021, he transferred the CEO and chairman roles to his wife, Nguyen Thi Hong Van. About six months later, he resumed his position as legal representative and CEO, a role he held until his passing.
In 2019, Nanogen was valued at over VND5 trillion ($215 million). At that time, Nhan was the largest shareholder, holding nearly 59.6% of the company’s equity, while his wife owned 14.6%. Nanogen was one of three Vietnamese institutions to research and develop a Covid-19 vaccine.
In late 2020, the company became the first in Vietnam to begin human trials for its vaccine, NanoCovax. After a year of testing, the research team reported that a 25mcg dose provided nearly 52% protection 180 days after injection.
As of 2020, the company’s total assets had reached nearly VND1.37 trillion ($52.74 million). That year also saw the highest revenue the company had recorded in five years.
Nanogen currently operates four manufacturing plants and one R&A center in Vietnam, covering a total area of 73,000 square meters.
With an annual production capacity of over 50 million units, the company has exported its products to 15 countries across Asia, Europe, Africa, and America.
- Read More
Vietnam's benchmark VN-Index could surpass 2,000 points in 2026: exec
VN-Index could top 2,000 points next year, said Huynh Minh Tuan, founder of FIDT - a Ho Chi Minh City-based investment consulting firm.
Finance - Thu, October 23, 2025 | 10:55 am GMT+7
Key factors helping firms export to demanding markets: DH Foods exec
Don’t treat business as a week-to-week or month-to-month affair. To go the distance, you must conduct business ethically, writes Nguyen Trung Dung, CEO of DH Foods.
Consulting - Thu, October 23, 2025 | 8:00 am GMT+7
Gold exchange, gold derivatives, gold ETFs proposed to be launched in Vietnam
Forming a gold exchange under state management in Vietnam is suitable to the reality, said Dao Xuan Tuan, head of the foreign exchange management department under the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV).
Finance - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 9:00 pm GMT+7
Real estate major Novaland wins key approval for $5 bln project in central Vietnam
Novaland Group (HoSE: NVL), one of Vietnam’s leading property developers, has received investment approval for its flagship project worth $5 billion in the central province of Lam Dong after years of delay due to legal obstacles.
Real Estate - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 4:20 pm GMT+7
Vietnam's plastics heavyweights Tien Phong, Binh Minh report profit surges
Tien Phong Plastic (HNX: NTP) recorded pre-tax profit of nearly VND949 billion ($36.04 million) in the first nine months of the year, exceeding its full-year target by 10.85%, while Binh Minh Plastic (HoSE: BMP) achieved record net profit of VND350 billion ($13.29 million) in Q3, surpassing its VND330 billion milestone set in the previous quarter.
Companies - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 4:17 pm GMT+7
Vietnam, Finland firms sign multiple MoUs on satellite, cybersecurity, aviation partnerships
A series of cooperation agreements were signed between Vietnam and Finland on Tuesday, within the framework of Party chief To Lam's official visit to Helsinki, while bilateral relationship was lifted to a "strategic partnership".
Economy - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 12:43 pm GMT+7
Trung Nam Ca Na seeks to convert agri-forest land for $147 mln industrial park in central Vietnam
Industrial park developer Trung Nam Ca Na is seeking approval to convert about 170 hectares of agricultural and forest land for the construction of a VND3,875 billion ($147 million) project in Vietnam’s central coastal province of Khanh Hoa.
Industrial real estate - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 10:54 am GMT+7
PV Power's arm posts 5-fold jump in Q3 profit on margin recovery
PetroVietnam Power Nhon Trach 2 JSC (HoSE: NT2) reported a sharp rebound in third-quarter earnings as improved margins and higher revenue lifted profits nearly fivefold from a year earlier.
Companies - Wed, October 22, 2025 | 8:37 am GMT+7
TCBS overtakes SSI to become Vietnam’s largest securities company by market cap
Over 2.3 billion shares of Techcom Securities JSC (TCBS) debuted on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HoSE) on Tuesday. The stock, TCX, recorded the highest price and the largest market capitalization in the Vietnamese securities sector.
Finance - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 10:27 pm GMT+7
Indonesia’s palm oil industry becomes investment magnet
Indonesia’s palm oil sector attracted IDR52.7 trillion, or approximately $3.2 billion, in investment during the first nine months of this year, with the money going into enabling the country to capture more value out of its top commodity, the country’s Ministry of Investment reported.
Southeast Asia - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 9:34 pm GMT+7
Indonesia reports strong job, investment growth
The Indonesian Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs reported strong job and investment growth during the first year of President Prabowo Subianto’s administration, compared with the first year under his predecessor.
Southeast Asia - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 9:29 pm GMT+7
Singapore grants conditional approval for 1GW low-carbon power import from Malaysia
Singapore has granted conditional approval to import 1 GW of low-carbon electricity from the Malaysian state of Sarawak, marking a new phase in the energy partnership between the two countries.
Southeast Asia - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 9:26 pm GMT+7
Margin lending in Vietnam’s stock market hits record, but not worrisome
Despite margin debt in Vietnam’s stock market surging sharply, experts believe that current margin pressure is not yet a major concern as top securities firms have significantly strengthened their capital buffers.
Finance - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 4:23 pm GMT+7
Lenders in Vietnam now in low-rate lending race: ACB exec
The biggest “headache” for banks in Vietnam now is that profit margins are getting thinner, said CEO of Asia Commercial Bank (ACB) Tu Tien Phat.
Banking & Finance - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 4:00 pm GMT+7
PV Gas - 35 years of innovation and technological leadership in Vietnam’s gas industry
Over the past 35 years of establishment and development (1990-2025), PV Gas, a subsidiary of state-owned giant Petrovietnam, has affirmed its pioneering position in Vietnam’s gas industry, marked by a series of groundbreaking achievements in science and technology.
Companies - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 3:45 pm GMT+7
Vietnam's consumer finance major F88 achieves 90% of year's profit target after 9 months
F88 Investment JSC (F88), a leading consumer finance company in Vietnam, reported a cumulative pre-tax profit of VND603 billion ($22.88 million) in the first nine months of 2025, a 2.5-fold increase year-on-year, reaching 90% of its full-year target of VND673 billion.
Companies - Tue, October 21, 2025 | 3:15 pm GMT+7
