 Co-Chair
Thao Griffiths, Country Head of Public Policy Vietnam, Meta
Thao Griffiths joined Meta on 13 Dec 2021, as Public Policy Head for Vietnam. Most recently, Thao comes from the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) where she played a key role bridging VCCI with both the private sector and key international partners like the US Government. Thao has worked across many fields in her professional life, with a particular focus on U.S.-Vietnam relations, including reconciliation and healing after the war. She served for nine years as Country Director for Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation in her 16-year tenure with the organisation both in its Hanoi and Washington offices. As it so happens, in the same week as she was joining Meta, Thao was also featured as one of “99 Outstanding Women in Vietnam” in the book We Are Vietnam by well-known photographer Nguyễn Á. Her section in the book highlights Thao’s journey from a childhood in the terraced hill-sides of Ha Giang valley to personal and professional adventures and advancements in Hanoi, Washington D.C., Melbourne, Geneva and beyond. Thao was interviewed on BBC, CNN, New York Times, Al Jazeera, and frequently on VTV and Vietnamese media. Thao has a Master’s degree in Systems Engineering from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) and a Master’s degree in International Relations from the American University. Thao is married to Dr Patrick Griffiths of the RMIT and they have two children now attending university in Australia. Thao loves to row, cycle, race dragon boats and play table tennis competitively. |
 Co-Chair
Kenny Bench, General Director, AltSource Vietnam |
Vice Chair & Legal Advisor
Chung Seck, Partner, Baker McKenzie Vietnam Ltd.
Seck Yee Chung leads the Firm’s Mergers & Acquisitions, IT/C and Healthcare practices in Vietnam. He is highly regarded in his field – Chambers and Asia Pacific Legal 500 rank him as a leading lawyer in the field of Corporate/M&A and TMT.
Chung has worked in Vietnam since 1999 and has been involved in significant cross-border transactions. He delivers sound and pragmatic advice on regulatory and transactional matters, particularly on foreign investment, market access, private and public M&A, securities, competition and anti-corruption, commercial activities, and data use, over a diverse range of sectors, from digital economy, healthcare, and consumer products, to food & beverage, manufacturing, property, and aviation.
He is a member of the Law Society of Singapore and serves as Vice President of the Singapore Business Group, Ho Chi Minh City. |
| Vice Chair, Digital Training for SMEs
Tuoc Huynh, UL |
| Co-Secretaries
Le Thu Minh, Associates, Baker McKenzie |
| Co-Secretaries
Le Tuan Minh, Associates, Baker McKenzie |
| Co-Secretaries
Mai Thi Loan, Paralegal, Baker McKenzie |
 Board Liaison
Chad Ovel, Partner, Mekong Capital
Chad Ovel has lived and worked in Vietnam continuously since 1996.
Chad is a Partner at Mekong Capital, a Vietnam-focused Private Equity firm, specializing in consumer driven businesses. Established in 2001, Mekong Capital has the most extensive private equity track record in Vietnam having completed 41 private equity investments, of which 26 have been fully exited. Chad has led Mekong Capital’s successful investments in various sectors including pharmaceuticals, real estate, logistics, casual dining and retail.
Before joining Mekong Capital, Chad had a successful track record as a CEO leading the rapid growth of ScanCom Vietnam, a foreign-owned furniture export manufacturing business, and AA Corporation, a local company operating in the sectors of construction, retail and manufacturing.
Chad is originally from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He holds a BA from Carleton College and an MBA from University of Chicago. |
 Board Liaison
Winnie Wong, Country Manager, Vietnam, Cambodia & Laos, Asia Pacific, Mastercard
Winnie Wong is responsible for growing Mastercard’s business in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. With her experience in consumer and corporate payments and banking, she brings a fresh perspective to the markets on digital payments and solutions.
Prior to her current role, Winnie was the Commercial B2B Sales Head for the region, where she was responsible for driving growth for Mastercard’s Business-to-Business (B2B) solutions across Asia Pacific. This includes working with governments, banks and corporations on trade digitization with the aim of improving efficiency and transparency, especially for cross-border trade. |
