Vietnam's elevation to emerging market status, according to FTSE Russell, is a factor encouraging this asset manager to strength its investment capabilities, it said.

Kenno, a Singapore-based asset manager focused on Vietnamese equities, has appointed Chris Hunt as chief investment officer, based in Singapore. 

With more than 30 years’ research and investment experience, including senior roles in Asia, Hunt previously led pan-regional equity research teams for Macquarie, CIMB, and HSBC, and has lived and worked in eight countries across the region. 

Most recently, he served as head of research for HSC Securities in Ho Chi Minh City.

"Chris brings extensive experience leading research teams across Asia and a deep understanding of Vietnam," Mikael Nastamo, CEO and co-founder of Kenno, said.

The firm said Hunt’s appointment follows Vietnam's reclassification by FTSE Russell to Secondary Emerging Market status in September 2026, with index inclusion being phased in through September 2027. Kenno, which has invested in Vietnam since 2015, sees the change as an opportunity to broaden its international investor base.

Founded in Finland in 2014, Kenno is an independent asset manager headquartered in Singapore, with a research office in Hanoi. The firm manages capital for professional investors in Europe and Asia. Kenno Asset Management Pte Ltd holds a Capital Markets Services licence for fund management issued by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. 

The Finland connection to Vietnam appears to show up in other ways. For example, in late September, Finnfund, a development financier and impact investor, signed a $15 million senior loan agreement with Vietnam’s EVF General Finance, a non-bank financial institution, which lends to small and medium-sized enterprises.

In other developments, in September, Citigroup and Ho Chi Minh City Development Joint Stock Commercial Bank, aka HDBank, said they had agreed to expand banking and financial services under a new pact.

The Southeast Asian country's economic performance has risen to emerging market status, along with the rise of an affluent middle class which has piqued the interest of wealth managers and private banks. Banks, which are adding to teams that include Vietnam coverage, include HSBC and Switzerland's Bordier & Cie, for example.