Trương Gia Bình (born 1956 in Nghệ An Province) is a Vietnamese businessman.[1] He is best known as the co-founder, chairman and CEO of the Vietnamese technology company FPT Corporation. Bình is also the vice president of The Asian-Oceanian Computing Industry Organization (ASOCIO),[2] Chairman of Vietnam Software Association (VINASA).
Trương Gia Bình | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1956 |
| Nationality | Vietnamese |
| Alma mater | BSc and PhD Moscow State University |
| Occupation(s) | Co-founder, Chairman and CEO, FPT Corporation |
| Years active | 1988-present |
| Known for | Co-founding FPT - the leading ICT company in Vietnam |
| Awards | One of the Vietnam's Top 10 ICT Persons of the Decade (2000-2009), Nikkei Asia Prize 2013 |
Early life edit
Trương Gia Bình was born on 1956 in Nghệ An Province. His father, Truong Gia Tho, was a doctor in Hanoi. Binh attended Chu Van An high school in Vietnam, and then went to the Soviet Union for college. He graduated from the Faculty of Mechanics and Mathematics, Lomonosov Moscow State University in 1978. He obtained his PhD in 1982 from the same university. In 1991, Bình was recognized as an associate professor by the State of Vietnam.[citation needed]
Career edit
On September 13, 1988, Bình and 12 Vietnamese scientists founded the Food Processing Technology company, the predecessor of FPT. He became the head of the Corporation for Financing and Promoting Technology, Vietnam's earliest information technology firm, in 1990.
In March 2002, after the equitization of FPT, Bình became the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of FPT Corporation. Afterwards, he led the firm in its expansion from its origins as an internet service provider to other areas such as software outsourcing for Japanese companies.[3]
In 2006, his company opened FPT University, Vietnam's first private university; he also took up a position as the chairman of its managing board.[4][5] He is speculated to be the richest person in Vietnam; as of January 2007, the value of his stake in FPT alone is VND2.6 trillion (US$164 million; 5,117,280 shares at VND525,000), according to the company's own prospectus. Bình himself is reportedly "tired" of the rumours.[6]
On July 16, 2012, Trương Gia Bình was appointed to a member of the National Council for Sustainable Development and Competitiveness Building.[7] The council, chaired by Vietnam's Deputy Prime Minister Nguyễn Thiện Nhân, is tasked with developing strategies and key policies to set orientations and a legal framework for the country's sustainable development in the next decade.
Personal life edit
Trương Gia Bình was first married to Vo Hanh Phuc. She is the daughter of General Võ Nguyên Giáp, a Vietnam People's Army general and politician. Giáp was VPA's Commander-in-Chief (1944–1976), Minister of Defence (1946–1980), deputy prime minister (1954–1991). Being the deputy prime minister in charge of science and technology from 1982 to 1991, Giáp lent a lot of help to Bình in founding FPT.
The couple had one daughter.
Honors and public recognition edit
In February 2010, Bình was voted by the Post Newspaper, the voice of the Ministry of Information & Communications and ICT journalists from over 30 popular newspapers in Vietnam as one of the Vietnam's Top 10 ICT Persons of the Decade (2000–2009).[8]
In 2013, Trương Gia Bình was awarded Nikkei Asia Prize 2013. Dr. Trương is the first Vietnamese entrepreneur to be honored by Nikkei Inc. in 18 years.[9] Bình received the award in the category of regional growth for having contributed to the development of his own company but also to the development of IT business in Vietnam. He set up a software industry organization and a university to foster IT experts.[10]
References edit
- ^ "Biography of Truong Gia Binh". Bstyle Doanh Nhân.
- ^ "Board of Officers of ASOCIO". Asian-Oceanian Computing Industry Organization (ASOCIO). 2013.
- ^ Sneider, Daniel (2004-08-07). "Commercial communism selling briskly in Vietnam". San Jose Mercury Times. Retrieved 2008-01-17.
- ^ Hai, Ho (2007-07-24). "FPT's Creativity City". Vietnam Economic News Online. Ministry of Trade, Vietnam. Archived from the original on 2012-09-19. Retrieved 2008-01-13.
- ^ "First Private University in Ho Chi Minh City to be Established". Sai Gon Giai Phong. Party Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City. 2007-04-06. Retrieved 2008-01-13.
- ^ "Who is the richest Vietnamese". Vietnamnet Bridge. Vietnam News Agency. 2007-01-16. Retrieved 2008-01-17.
- ^ Prime Minister Nguyễn Tấn Dũng (2012-07-16). "PM Okays Personnel for National Council on Sustainable Development & Competitiveness Enhancement Building". Government Portal - Socialist Republic of Vietnam (in Vietnamese).
- ^ "Who's Who in Vietnam ICT Industry". Business in Asia. Archived from the original on 2013-01-09.
- ^ "Dr. Truong Gia Binh honored with Nikkei Asia Awards 2013". FPT Corporation.
- ^ "Nikkei Asia Prizes 2013".