An investment firm that works for women

Rather than changing women-led businesses to fit the system, we seek to change the system

Our 10+ years of experience have helped us identify an overlooked opportunity amongst moderate growth companies. While some may be dismissive of these SMEs as ‘lifestyle’ or ‘micro-businesses’, our experience has revealed that many of these businesses are in fact profitable, cash-flow positive businesses growing at healthy rates.

Fit-for-purpose financing

We’re focusing on debt products, because we believe they’re a better fit for the moderate growth, cash-flow positive businesses that we’re targeting. We are also pioneering an evergreen fund structure to better fit the time horizon and financing needs of our portfolio companies.

Diverse perspectives, common values

Our team shares a desire to achieve gender equality.

Beacon is proud to be a 2X fund and part of the global movement to invest in women.

The “2X Challenge” is a commitment by The G7 Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) to collectively mobilise private sector investments in developing country markets to provide women with improved access to opportunities that enhance economic participation and access.

Join us to build a new model of entrepreneurial success

Hoang An
Nguyen

Investment Analyst

ABOUT HOANG AN

Hoang An is a finance professional with a diverse background in audit and investment banking. Her career commenced at Deloitte, where she worked in the audit function. During her time at Deloitte, she gained experience in financial analysis, risk assessment, and regulatory compliance, primarily focusing on companies in the manufacturing and trading sectors. Following her tenure at Deloitte, she assumed a role at BCA Partners, a boutique investment bank in Vietnam. At BCA, she closely collaborated with SMEs and early-stage startups, engaging in activities such as commercial due diligence, fundraising, and consulting, contributing to clients’ investment decisions, securing funding, and optimising business strategies. Hoang An holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance from Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City, and earned her MBA degree from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium.
Female entrepreneurs in Vietnam may not always receive the recognition they deserve, yet they possess a wealth of skills and perspectives that can add significant value. By empowering women, we acknowledge the untapped potential within our economy. It involves creating an inclusive environment that not only offers equal opportunities but also appreciates the unique qualities and insights that women bring to the table, ultimately contributing to more diverse and well-rounded decision-making processes. Thus, empowering female entrepreneurs is not just about gender equality; it’s about harnessing the full spectrum of talent and expertise that women can offer and realising the immense benefits it can bring to the economy as a whole.
I draw immense inspiration from entrepreneurs who possess a fervent commitment to translating visionary ideas into tangible solutions that address pressing social issues. What truly resonates with me is their resolute determination to drive positive changes in our society.

Hoang
Nguyen

SENIOR INVESTMENT ASSOCIATE

ABOUT HOANG

Hoang has eight years of experience in finance and taxation, including fundraising, consulting, corporate finance, M&A due diligence, tax optimization and planning. Based in Ho Chi Minh City, Hoang focuses on credit assessment and portfolio management. Prior to joining Beacon Fund, Hoang worked as Finance Manager at EcoTruck, a leading technology logistics company with the mission to improve efficiency and optimise logistics costs for Vietnam market. He managed all finance strategies of the Company and led the execution team to successfully raise USD 4.5 million equity investment throughout a full fundraising process. Previously, Hoang served as a Senior Consultant at Deloitte Vietnam for more than five years. He led service teams to success in multiple projects including but not limited to due diligence for Merger and Acquisition purposes, tax planning and optimisation, market entry advisory, and accounting and tax system health-check to numerous clients in a variety of industries such as logistics, retail, manufacturing, banking and credit institutions, real estate, etc. Hoang holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Quantitative Finance from Ho Chi Minh City University of Economics, and is pursuing Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).
My mother is the most positive and important influence in my life who has helped to shape my personality and characteristics. No matter what happens in life, she has taught me to have faith and shared with me her experience in overcoming tough situations. She is the kind of person who always has time for her kids, always interested in learning new things, would sacrifice herself for her family, and certainly is a role model in my eyes.
Integrity and visionary are two characteristics I generally look for in entrepreneurs. Visionary helps entrepreneurs to foresee the trend of future and make great moves to achieve success while integrity is essential in building trust and long-term cooperation.

An
Nguyen

SENIOR INVESTMENT ANALYST

ABOUT AN

An has over 7 years of experience in operations management, consulting, due diligence, and fund management. Prior to joining Beacon Fund, An spent 2.5 years as an Investment Officer at Mirae Asset Prevoir Life Insurance, where he was in charge of deal execution, credit assessment, portfolio management and budgeting. An also possesses an entrepreneurial spirit as he opened a fast-food restaurant in Houston, Texas after college before starting his career in financial services.
An holds a Master of Finance from the University of Houston, where he graduated Summa cum Laude, with a focus on financial instruments and hedging. He was awarded the Texas Public Education Scholarship for excellent academic record. He is currently pursuing his Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) certification.

As we set forth on life’s journey, we experience multitude of emotions, be it the warmth of being in our mother’s embrace, the sweetness of first kiss, the bitterness of a broken heart, the horror of war, the pain of losing our loved ones, etc. But after such high and low peaks of life, if one can still retain his/her original vision of the world, still admire the first new light of a new day even in the darkest days of life, then he/she is my role model. And I know one woman with such qualities, my mom.

Female entrepreneurs generally have more difficulties than male counterpart in accessing capital, be it high value properties are usually owned by men, stereotypes about the roles of women in society, etc. By focusing extensively in women-led enterprises, Beacon can help bridging the gap between what’s needed and what’s provided for female entrepreneurs; I am proud to be a part of Beacon achieving that goal.

Trang
Ngo

COMMUNICATIONS ASSOCIATE

ABOUT TRANG

Trang is a strong believer in the power of vulnerability, genuineness and a serving mentality mindset that leads to meaningful connections – where meaningful work can happen and sustain. She has more than six years of work experience in the private and development sectors combined, particularly in external relations, communications and operations management. Trang graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington with Cum Laude honours and a Bachelor of Business Administration, Concentration in Finance Degree.
Female entrepreneurs’ access to finance and community support is proven limited leading to many potential opportunities staying unrealised – I am proud to take part in Beacon’s efforts to address this challenge. However, the work we do at Beacon doesn’t just stop there. We are ambitious to bring out the best in the entrepreneurs that we work with and help them to gain confidence in the work they do. That’s what makes Beacon special to me. Coming from different backgrounds with diversified cultures, we value all team members’ perspectives and are receptive to change for the better. I believe by having such open-minded, driven, and inspiring individuals, Beacon can grow strong as a team in striving towards the mission of creating meaningful impacts for the entrepreneurial community.
The vulnerability to share their stories, the confidence that they are not alone in the process, and the courage to realise their alternative definition of success.
I believe all of us have pros and cons, and that everyone has at least one thing that makes them admirable. I appreciate my mom’s cooking talent and her ability to nurture the whole family. I look up to my colleagues who are incredibly talented and dedicated to the work they do. I admire the Grabbike driver who works so hard by being willing to get sweaty on a 40-degree sunny day in Saigon just to be able to feed his family. I guess the number of role models in my life is countless, and I feel blessed for the opportunity to know and learn from them day by day.

Yen
Do

INVESTMENT MANAGER

ABOUT YEN

Yen has almost five years of experience in impact investing in Southeast Asia. She has been a key investment team member on numerous deals, working end-to-end from origination, to execution of the transaction, to portfolio management. She worked closely with Patamar’s Partners in leading one of the first gender lens investing funds in the region and in building the fund’s impact measurement and gender lens strategies. Prior to Beacon Fund and Patamar Capital, she had stints at a VC-backed fintech startup and in the investment banking sector. Yen started her career as an investment banking analyst at Vietnam’s top brokerage firm, Ho Chi Minh City Securities Corporation (HSC). Yen has a strong passion for social impact which led to her involvement in a number of non-profit volunteering and a mentorship programs. Yen graduated cum laude from North Central College, Illinois where she pursued a B.S. in Finance and B.A. in Global Studies.
I imagine when entrepreneurs think about Beacon Fund, they are excited to work with us not only because we have products which meet their needs but also because of the experiences we are able to deliver. I want fundraising to feel ‘in-control’, achievable and rewarding to them. I want Beacon to become a trusted, approachable partner of entrepreneurs where they can come and bounce ideas off us (even ideas of how to better serve themselves) instead of projecting the scary uptight power that financial institutions typically emit. Entrepreneurs can fully focus on delivering the impacts and mission they set out to do by working with Beacon Fund.
Interestingly enough, this was the question I got asked when being interviewed for this job. To me, empowering women means empowering myself. It’s not easy to feel ‘in control’ of our own life and feel that we can be whatever we want to be. We tend to dream smaller and smaller after adversity. This is especially true for women as the unspoken expectations of us can be literally bone-breaking, and we tend to internalise our struggles too much. Empowering women is helping them realise their highest potentials as human-beings. By doing so, I build my own examples of woman’s success and contribute to my life’s mission of empowering others.

Lee
FitzGerald

CO-FOUNDER & PRESIDENT

ABOUT LEE

Lee brings to the investment community three decades of leadership and operational experience in various commercial sectors. His professional career began as a practicing attorney assisting institutional investors in private placement finance transactions. Later, Lee joined San Francisco-based Venture Out Holdings as President and CEO where he focused its private investment portfolio on operating companies in the recreation vehicle, hospitality, reprographics and real estate development sectors. As a Co-Founder and Partner at Patamar Capital, Lee leads fund operations and has built and sustained the global infrastructure to make and exit investments in an efficient manner. Each of these ventures refined Lee’s expertise in building effective organisations, finding and inspiring the best talents, and creating environments where every team member can succeed. Throughout his career, one truth has remained constant: success depends on your ability to develop and sustain solid, healthy relationships.

It’s not about me! This is a women-led initiative. At this stage of my business career, it’s a privilege to be able to dedicate my time and experience to something that has (remarkably!) never been attempted in this way before.

At Beacon, we are seizing a unique moment in time where there is a convergence between the need and the availability of capital.

The opportunity and the need for resources are both huge. There are very few firms intentionally focused on solving this problem in this particular way. My role is not to lead, but to guide, assist and help our team and the women-led businesses we are serving. This is what fuels my passion and imagination every day.

“It’s the fundamentals, stupid”. Don’t forget the past. Just when you think the basics of business no longer apply, they will certainly creep up behind you and then slap you in the face.

No matter how new the frontier, how sparkling the tech, how brilliant the team you are investing in… the real long run value is always going to be about unit economics and cashflow.

We are building a bridge.

On one side of the bridge, low income women in developing markets are shouldering the lion’s share of the economic burden.

On the other side of the bridge, are economic choices to which these women are too often denied access.

What inspires me is the opportunity to help span this gap that exists for more than half of the world’s population.

Mouna
Aouri

VENTURE PARTNER

ABOUT MOUNA

Mouna Aouri earned her MS in Engineering in Japan in 2001 and spent most of her career working in leading engineering firms in France, North Africa and Japan. She has later led the Japan market expansion for a French technology startup (a company of VINCI GROUP) developing new technologies to maintain civil Engineering Infrastructure in Japan. In 2006, she started her own consultancy firm to manage and development infrastructure projects funded by AfDB and JICA. Mouna brings over 20 years of experience in technology, entrepreneurship, management, angel and seed investing. Her work approach and leadership draws from her rich cross-cultural experience working in Asia, Europe and Africa. Following the Arab spring revolution in 2011, Mouna has relocated to Singapore with her family. Her deep desire to see more women strive in technology and for more women to play a larger role in founding the companies of the future led her to found Woomentum in 2014. Woomentum is a Singapore based network organisation that advances women-owned SMEs and startups to achieve success through access to mentoring, business networks and capital. A mission that also led her to join Beacon Fund’s mission. Mouna also holds board seats at technology startups and is a Director at the Myanmar Private Equity and Venture Capital Association. She is a a proud mother of two girls, an avid boxer and a passionate drummer.
Over the last decade I’ve been relentlessly working towards advancing women entrepreneurs to achieve success. However, full access to capital remains a major obstacle. Shifting capital to investment vehicles that are a better fit for women entrepreneurs’ needs requires leadership. Beacon Fund set out to achieve exactly that. Investing in women matters now more than ever, which gets me even more excited to be part of Beacon Fund’s journey.
When women entrepreneurs are empowered to build sustainable and profitable businesses, they empower their families, communities and their societies as a whole.
Resilience. It takes courage to start a business but it takes resilience for entrepreneurs to stay on their chosen path, to overcome challenges and to take the business to a fully operating business.
To engage as much as possible with entrepreneurs to understand their challenges, think about how the portfolio companies align with the values the fund stands for.

Richard
Marney

IC MEMBER & ADVISOR

ABOUT RICHARD

Richard has a broad and varied 49-year career in emerging markets banking, principal investing, economics, and asset management, including senior-level business development, risk-management, fundraising, and operating roles, along with extensive experience on company boards of directors, and investment and advisory committees across a broad range of sectors and regions. He is planning to work into his seventies and eighties to maintain the family tradition, and to continue to challenge age-group distance swimming records along the way.
Our investment focus on female entrepreneurs in early-growth stage companies contributes meaningfully to sustainable growth in the countries we serve. The mission and values of the fund provide the promise of gender empowerment, and equality of opportunity and achievement for all. I am excited to be a contributor to the Beacon story.
Passion, perseverance, self-perspective, quiet confidence, and curiosity.
Having lived the adage, “you win the race on the last lap, not the first” and so seen as one who continued to learn, experiment, and strive for improvement and greater achievement throughout his life.

Ha
Nguyen

LEGAL ASSOCIATE

ABOUT HA

Ha has almost eight years of experience working as legal advisor for early-stage businesses in Vietnam as well as for Rajah & Tann. At Scommerce, a leading integrated logistics provider for millions of merchants and consumers in Vietnam, she contributed to the success of closing three fundraising rounds for a total of nearly USD 100 million from foreign investors. Later on, she joined Propnesi Media and managed a licensing project which brought a big hit to the entertainment industry with a variety show named “Chay Di Cho Chi” in 2019. She is a qualified lawyer and a member of the Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association. Ha has a positive vision toward the investment environment in Vietnam and wishes to be a solid support for investors as well as SMEs to have the opportunity to cooperate and develop continuously and favourably under the law.
According to the Cambridge Dictionary, “empower” means to “give someone the official authority or the freedom to do something”. Based on that definition, I believe that empowering women is enabling women to have power and control over their own lives and have the ability to make intentional choices including operating a business and accessing financial resources, etc. without any limitations and regardless of their background or gender.
I was really impressed by a quote from an animated movie in 2017 named “Coco” that says “Our memories, they have to be passed down by those who knew us in life in the stories they tell about us.” It’s very true. We are only really remembered by those who know our story, and have memories with us. I believe that good stories and beautiful memories will be remembered forever. That said, during the years that I am present in this world, I hope I can write stories of myself – someone who is filled with love, understanding and kindness which will never be forgotten.

Tuan
La

MANAGER, PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT

ABOUT TUAN

Tuan La is a seasoned attorney with over 10 years of diverse experience in business, investments, legal, start-ups and private equity. Prior to the Beacon Fund, he was a director at IFB Holdings managing F&B and media portfolio companies with a focus on operational efficiency and optimisation for exit. Previously, Tuan was also an associate at Baker McKenzie advising multinational companies on practical advice related to various issues of market access, business formation, and regulatory compliance. Tuan started his career as an equity trader for a hedge fund in Los Angeles, California. Tuan holds a B.S in Finance and a JD/MBA from the University of Hawaii, where he graduated cum laude (JD) and was awarded honours for outstanding MBA student. He is admitted to the Hawaii Bar (2016).
In 10 years, I would like to see Beacon become the gold standard for high quality social impact investing in SEA and across all of Asia. I hope that Beacon will have meaningfully impacted and elevated each of our entrepreneurs/partners’ lives and the communities we are involved with. I am looking forward to seeing all the great things we will achieve.
My mom is my role model and inspiration. As the only breadwinner in the family, she had to find alternative solutions to a normal job because she needed to also be available as a caregiver to her young children. Thus, she started her own work from home business. Hence, I am very proud to be her son and do not take anything that I have for granted.
It is very hard to be an entrepreneur, or at least a successful one. There are many ups and downs on this long journey. One needs to be able to plan, execute, problem-solve, reassess, pivot, plan again, execute… and lastly never give up. Thus, the most important aspect for an entrepreneur is resilience and passion. Without this, an entrepreneur will not be able to survive the difficulties of building a company.

Lan
Hong

ADMIN ASSISTANT

ABOUT LAN

Lan has nearly eight years of experience in administrative and customer service across multiple sectors including hospitality, trading services and investment. She also provides human resources support for the companies and organisations that she works with, as well as contributes to improving team members’ well-being and creating a vibrant working environment for the entire team.
In the past, women were less respected. Most of the time, they were expected to stay at home to look after children and do housework. They did not receive a lot of support or were not encouraged to try new things. Today, women are more conscious to invest in gaining knowledge, pursuing their dreams and taking care of themselves. Investing in women is seen as an opportunity for women who want to change and grow to overcome difficulties in life. I’m proud to contribute to the development of organisations that support women like Beacon, because I believe they will bring great value and great significance to society.
The first person that comes to my mind is my mom – someone who always puts her family first. She has been a constant source of inspiration. Though throughout her life, she has encountered numerous challenges, she always stands strong on her feet and tries to find ways to overcome them. Most importantly, she never gives up. She has taught me the value of persistence, at the same time, being kind and taking care of other people.

Hanh
Dang

SENIOR INVESTMENT ASSOCIATE

ABOUT HANH

Hanh has almost fifteen years of experience in business development and consulting. She has experience in launching new business lines and designing new operating models, strategic partnership management, supply chain and operations solutions, and performance improvement. Prior to joining Beacon Fund, Hanh worked as Business Development Manager at EcoTruck, a leading technology logistics company. Hanh led sales efforts across the company to a predominantly SME customer base. In addition, she spearheaded the launch of ten new business lines for the company (including fuel, tyres, insurance, truck loans), taking them from concept design, through to pilot, to full-scale launch. Hanh also served as a Senior Consultant at PwC for nearly three years. She led numerous management consulting and supply chain transformation projects for both the private sector and public sector across Southeast Asia. Hanh holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Ho Chi Minh City University of Economics and a Master’s Degree in Logistics and Supply Chain Management from Heriot-Watt University, UK.
Through lots of ups and downs in my life, I’ve always looked up to my mom as a role model for her career and personal milestones. She had been the Principal of a country-standard primary school for over 30 years. From a career perspective, I have learnt the characteristics of being resilient and whole-hearted at the work you choose, and being a tough but greatly reliable leader to your team members. From the personal side, her dedicated care for me and my dad and her financial management skills have resulted in a better version of the daily me, who is currently a toddler’s mom and a wife.
In a professional working environment, there is a huge diversity and different kinds of people we might have working relationships with. I would prefer to work with people with integrity as it will enable us to be closer to our true selves and also to effectively use our time and bandwidth to co-create more meaningful value during the time we work together.

Shuyin
Tang

CO-FOUNDER & CEO

ABOUT SHUYIN

Shuyin has over a decade of experience investing and working in emerging Asia. Based in Vietnam since 2013, she has witnessed first hand the rise (and rise!) of Vietnam’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. As a Partner at Patamar Capital, Shuyin leads Patamar’s Vietnam Office and evaluates investment opportunities in Southeast Asia. She spearheads Patamar’s gender lens investing efforts, including managing one of the first gender lens investing funds in Southeast Asia, the Investing in Women Fund. Prior to entering the investment sector, she worked in strategy consulting at Bain & Company and development consulting at TechnoServe.

Shuyin was named one of Australia’s “100 Women of Influence” by the Australian Financial Review in 2015, an Asia 21 Young Leader by the Asia Society in 2016, and one of the “40 Under 40 Most Influential Asian-Australians” in 2020. She currently serves on the Board of the Equality Fund and the Impact Investing Council of the Global Private Capital Association. From 2018 to 2020 she served on the Southeast Asia Advisory Council of Women’s World Banking, a global NGO promoting women’s financial inclusion. She graduated summa cum laude from the Australian National University where she was also awarded the University Medal.

Sometimes we get so caught up in performing according to the rules of the system that we stop questioning why they exist. In my previous efforts to reach out to female entrepreneurs, I felt like I was tinkering around the edges rather than trying to change the rules of the game. Beacon is our attempt to break those boundaries and design an investment firm which works for women.
Customer centricity is everything. Are you staying close enough to your customers and doing the deep listening to truly understand their needs? Turning this question on myself and my work was in many ways the impetus for Beacon. I realised that current investment products in the market were not meeting the needs of women-led businesses, and that prompted me to imagine a world in which investors designed their organisations with their targeted entrepreneurs (customers) at their core.

Diverse perspectives, common values. This is so important. Common values provide the threads of trust which allow a team to challenge each other and push each other without descending into a cacophony.

At the same time, a glossy mission isn’t much good without incredible execution. I love working with people who have a track record of ruthless execution mixed with a healthy dose of humour and big helping of common sense.