As 2019 approaches a close I would like to wish all BBGV members, clients and friends a Very Happy Christmas and a Prosperous New Year for 2020. The past year has been a rewarding one for BBGV. Over the year BBGV hosted many successful business seminars, charity, social and networking events.
BBGV is dedicated to continue its significant support for charitable work across Vietnam and we undertook our regular fundraising events in 2019 via the Corporate Football Tournaments and Fun Runs in both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City raising more than 2.8bn VND for charity support.
During 2019 BBGV organized a total of 63 events including the regular and popular networking evenings. This year BBGV continued to run several networking events many of which included other chambers. This helped to widen the scope of opportunities for members to meet with new people. These types of events will continue throughout 2020.
Working closely with Department for International Trade (DIT) in Vietnam, the BBGV Business Centre has: supported 02 trade missions to Vietnam. Significantly we have identified and arranged more than 100 matchmaking meetings for British companies with Vietnamese counterparts. Over the past 12 months the BBGV Business Centre was approached by 300 companies enquiring about the potential of the Vietnam Marketplace, and helped secure a total export value of GBP 44.5 million for UK exporters.
The BBGV Secretariat and Business Centre staff, continue to demonstrate their commitment and support to the company. They worked diligent with both member companies based here in Vietnam and with those new companies looking at the commercial opportunities on offer here. The BBGV Board saw some changes at the AGM and the members continue to provide strong support and guidance in the running of the organisation on behalf of the wider membership. BBGV represents the member interests via its full corporate membership on the Vietnam Business Forum (VBF). The British Advocacy Committee, comprising of the Heads of some of the largest British companies operating in Vietnam also continued to provided support to BBGV in its engagement of key business issues.
The BBGV working relationship with Department for International Trade and FCO in Vietnam continues in strength, the Board and myself are very grateful for the support received from both Ambassador Gareth Ward as well as that of the Consul General to HCMC, Ian Gibbons.
The support and involvement from all the BBGV member companies and individuals over the past year has been very welcomed and appreciated. BBGV now looks towards 2020 to further strengthening the voice of British business in Vietnam, both to our Business Centre clients as well as to every BBGV member through our extensive list of events and activities.
With best seasonal wishes to you all,
Peter Rimmer
Executive Director BBGV.
This Week's Insight: December 2nd 2019: Condotels. Read more | 
