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Mekong Capital’s Chris Freund turns hard lessons into better leadership

The Vietnamese PE firm now wants to build a company led by a new generation of partners

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Published Sun, Oct 25, 2026 · 08:00 AM
    • Chris Freund founded Mekong Capital in 2001 as Vietnam’s first hands-on PE firm focused on private local businesses. 
    • Chris Freund founded Mekong Capital in 2001 as Vietnam’s first hands-on PE firm focused on private local businesses.  PHOTO: MEKONG CAPITAL

    CHRIS Freund’s biggest investment success reaped a 57-times return.

    But having invested in Vietnam for 25 years, the founder of private equity (PE) firm Mekong Capital appears more concerned with the mistakes behind its patchy results.

    Too much of Mekong’s returns have depended on a handful of outsized winners, he said. Investors seek consistent returns, which they can count on.