Trump Group eyes golfing route, lodge initiatives in Vietnam

A consortium between the Trump Organization and its partner in Vietnam plans multiple investments worth billions of dollars in golf courses, hotels and real estate projects Vietnam, Reuters quoted the consortium’s spokesman as saying.

The consortium eyes three or four multi-billion-dollar investments in Vietnam, the spokesman said, noting the first project will break ground in May, just months after the deal was sealed, and the second one could be announced this year.

The first project, worth $1.5 billion, in capital Hanoi’s neighboring province of Hung Yen, includes three 18-hole golf courses and a residential complex. It is the largest in East Asia for the Trump Organization. The first two courses are expected to be operational by mid-2027, he said.

The project was announced in October by the Trump Organization’s Vietnamese partner, real estate developer Kinhbac City Development Holding Corporation, listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange as KBC.

At a March 18 meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh in Hanoi, Charles James Boyd-Bowman, CEO of IDG Capital Vietnam which represents the Trump Organization in Vietnam, expressed his hope that the project will complete in March 2027 to serve the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting.

He noted that his company is working closely with Vietnam’s ministries and Hung Yen province to accelerate the project as quickly as possible.

Sites for another golf or hotel project close to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam’s southern business hub, have been shortlisted with a deal expected to be announced by the end of this year, the spokesman added, noting it was too early to indicate the size of the possible investment.

A Reuters analysis last year found the golf course and resort business, thanks to multiple facilities in the U.S., was the biggest driver of cash flow for the Trump Organization.

At the March 18 meeting with Charles James Boyd-Bowman, CEO of IDG Capital Vietnam which represents the Trump Organization in Vietnam, PM Pham Minh Chinh said that Vietnamese agencies will conduct a thorough review to fast-track the project, ensuring legal compliance and the interests of all stakeholders.

The government leader called on the Trump Organization to position Vietnam as a business base and expand its investment footprint to other localities in the country as well as potential areas in which the organization excels and Vietnam prioritizes.

He asked the firm to strengthen partnerships with Vietnamese enterprises, helping them engage in its global supply chain and ecosystem.

Boyd-Bowman revealed that his company is actively exploring more investment opportunities in Vietnam. It is working to advance visits to Vietnam by the Trump Organization leaders, thus helping bolster the two countries’ relations and elevate Vietnam’s global profile, he added.