In the panorama of M&A deals worth trillions of dollars, the world is witnessing a historic shift in the definition of "corporate value". From tangible assets such as real estate, factories or production lines, the focus now shifts to intangible assets: algorithms, user data, intellectual property and high-tech human resources.

1. Global M&A: Intangible Assets Become a Strategic Target

According to statistics from the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), the third quarter of 2025 marked the explosion of the global M&A market when the total transaction value exceeded the 1,000 billion USD mark, the highest level since the pandemic. Cumulatively since the beginning of the year, the deal value has reached 3,100billion USD, up 35% over the same period in 2024, turning 2025 into the most exciting period since 2021.

The notable point is that the nature of deals is changing. More than 70% of the value of deals focuses on knowledge-based fields such as technology, pharmaceuticals, and artificial intelligence instead of traditional capital-intensive industries.

Typical deals are not only large in scale but also reflect the strategy of shifting to intangible assets:

• Microsoft – Activision Blizzard (69 billion USD): Not simply expanding gaming market share, but owning a warehouse of user behavior data to serve the metaverse.
• Amazon – One Medical: A strategic step in the fielddigital health care, access to medical records and patient data systems.
• Nvidia – Arm: The competition for a dominant position in the AI ​​processor design industry, which owns the fundamental chip IP.

According to Centerview Partners, CEOs now cannot stand by when competitors make revolutionary deals. M&A is gradually becoming a strategic tool, no longer simply financial leverage.

2. M&A In The Era 2025–2030: Hunting For Data, Talent And IP

Entering a new development cycle, M&A becomes the future acquisition tool: from core technology, engineering teams, to ownership of data ecosystems. Price trThe power of the modern enterprise no longer lies in books or physical assets, but in streams of code, AI training data, and rapid deployment capabilities on edge computing platforms. Possessing "brain matter" in many forms is a key criterion in valuing the deal and determining post-M&A potential. This trend is not limited to the US or Europe. Innovation centers in Asia such as Singapore, South Korea and even Vietnam are becoming "red addresses" for capital flows looking for emerging technology, talent and IP. The recent deal between Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Electronic Arts ($55 billion) is a testament: global capital flows are moving away from physical infrastructure to businesses that own platforms, user ecosystems and virtual technologies.Highly extensible.

3. Vietnam: From "Factory" to Knowledge Technology Center?

In that context, the opportunities and challenges posed to Vietnamese businesses are not small. A decade ago, investors came to Vietnam because of its land fund and low labor costs. Today, those criteria have changed. Data, technology development team and new IP are what create attraction. Corporations such as FPT, Viettel, MoMo, and VNG are pioneering in repositioning corporate assets through investing in AI infrastructure, platform business models and data management strategies. However, there is still a large gap between potential and reality when most domestic businesses do not have a standardized system for valuing intangible assets.�nh. Without being able to demonstrate value through clean data, proprietary technology and high-end human resources, the ability to attract foreign capital – or even become a buyer – will remain limited.

On the contrary, businesses with a long-term vision are gradually considering M&A as a strategy for learning and upgrading capacity, instead of just a financial transaction. Many domestic corporations have begun to proactively acquire technology startups to acquire human resources, data and quickly deploy solutions.

4. Three Groups of Intangible Assets Are Being Hunted

SE Asia Tech M&A Review 2025 report shows that the Southeast Asian technology market is in the adjustment period after a hot growth period, but the trend isM&A hasn't stopped, just shifted direction.

Deals in the region are focusing on three strategic asset groups:

• IP and Data Platforms: Enterprises that own core technologies, AI/ML solutions, or large-scale data analytics platforms are becoming number one target of foreign investors. Owning IP not only protects competitive advantage, but also facilitates rapid expansion into international markets.
• Acqui-hiring: Concentrated acquisitions of engineers, data scientists and system development experts. This is a popular direction in the context of a global shortage of technology human resources, and is a way to approach evil peoplei is faster than building from scratch.
• Digital Infrastructure: Including data centers, digital payment networks and technology logistics. As digital transformation becomes a national priority, businesses with large-scale digital platforms will hold a strategic position.

5. Policy and Growth Drivers in Vietnam

The Vietnamese government has made many moves to support this trend: National Strategy on data and AI to 2030, experimental legal frameworks for fintech and cross-border M&A sandbox are being completed. This is the foundation to upgrade Vietnam's role on the global technology M&A map.

However, barriersInternal factors still exist:

• Startup ecosystem is still young
• Lack of intangible asset valuation standards
• Lack of secondary market for divestment and restructuring

In the early stages, the number of deals may not be high, but the quality, that is, the potential for development after M&A, will be the most important indicator.

We are entering a stage where business value no longer lies in what businesses currently own, but in what they can become. In particular, technology, human resources and data of intangible assets will decide who is the winner.

Vietnam, if taken advantage of at the right time and expense.In short, it is possible to completely transform ourselves from "hunter" to "hunter" in the knowledge-based global value chain. To do that, domestic businesses need to change their thinking: from expanding with capital, to expanding with technology; from owning a factory, to owning an idea.

Source: Investment newspaper