Wife of Southeast Asia’s richest man becomes Vietnam’s 2nd wealthiest

Huong, a 57-year-old vice chairwoman of Vingroup, has witnessed her net worth surge by $162 million, reaching $4 billion, according to Forbes magazine. This places her in second position among the wealthiest individuals in Vietnam, sharing the rank with Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao, chairwoman of Vietjet Air, who also boasts a $4 billion fortune.

Huong, who holds a master's degree in international law from Ukraine, is one of the founding members of Vingroup, the largest privately held company in the nation, with a 4.4% ownership stake in the company. Forbes initially recognized her as a billionaire in early February, alongside her sister Pham Thuy Hang, now the third-richest person in Vietnam with a $2.8 billion fortune.

Vingroup chairman Vuong, 58, remains the wealthiest individual in Southeast Asia, with a net worth of $35.6 billion, following a $1.3 billion increase on Wednesday. Vietnam's four other billionaires experienced net worth gains ranging from $10 million to $111 million on Wednesday. They include Tran Dinh Long, chairman of Hoa Phat Group with a $2.5 billion fortune, Ho Hung Anh, chairman of Techcombank with $2.3 billion, Ngo Chi Dung, chairman of VPBank with $1.1 billion, and Nguyen Dang Quang, chairman of consumer giant Masan Group with $1 billion.

The Vietnamese stock market's benchmark VN-Index experienced a 1.67% increase on Wednesday, marking its fifth consecutive day of gains. This rise is attributed to Vingroup's shares, which have surged 12% since the company's inclusion in the FTSE Global Equity Index Series last week. Additionally, 27 new stocks were added to the London-based index provider, enhancing the accessibility of Vietnamese stocks to international investors.

Vietnam is set to transition from a frontier market to a secondary emerging market in the FTSE Russell indices on September 21, 2026.