Alibaba, Warburg want piece of Vietnam’s online boom

A Tiki.vn delivery rider packs orders into his motorbike's top box at one of the company's warehouses in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. — Bloomberg

Weaving through congested Ho Chi Minh City on his Honda motorbike, Ho Duc Quang zips past a statue of the city’s namesake revolutionary leader and the warren-like Ben Thanh Market to drop off toys, books and other packages to customers of online retailer Tiki.vn.

Quang, 25, needs to be quick, since Tiki guarantees two-hour delivery to its express service customers in Vietnam’s metropolis. He uses AirPods to let customers know he’s about to arrive, but there’s one thing slowing him down: Quang has to wait for customers to open packages and confirm everything is correct before speeding off on his next delivery. It’s a must for many Vietnamese still unsure if they can trust e-commerce merchants.