The archive · Consumer Apps · Strategic decision · 2020–2026
M Village's bet: co-living apartments become Vietnam's multi-brand hotel group
Ex-The Coffee House CEO Nguyen Hai Ninh's Modern Village Lifestyle raises $26M at a $121M valuation with 53 locations across Vietnam.
M Village (Modern Village Lifestyle)
What the business is
Vietnam co-living and hospitality operator offering short- and long-term stays in serviced apartments, plus workspaces, food, health and community services; rebranded in May 2026 as Modern Village Lifestyle with a portfolio including M Village Hotel, Express by M Village, Savvy and Signature/Grand Signature resorts.
Starting capital：New round of about US$26M announced August 2026 ($18M from Mizuho Asia Partners via Grand Mia Pte. Ltd. and $8M from Trip.com); earlier rounds include $3.7M Series A, a $10M Series B from Trip.com in 2024, and a VND100B unsecured credit facility from OCB in 2025.
How it started
M Village was incorporated in Ho Chi Minh City in October 2020 by Nguyen Hai Ninh, co-founder and former CEO of The Coffee House, Vietnam's major coffee chain. Ninh set out to build a modern housing brand: serviced apartments for short- and long-term stays, with the first property opening in 2022 and workspace, food and community services layered on.
What happened
M Village raised a $3.7M Series A, then a $10M Series B from Trip.com in 2024 and a VND100B unsecured credit facility from OCB in 2025, the latter rare for a Vietnamese startup. In four years it grew to 53 locations nationwide, and in May 2026 it rebranded to Modern Village Lifestyle to signal a shift from one co-living brand to an ecosystem of stay brands.
How it ended up
In August 2026 a new round of about $26M closed: Mizuho Asia Partners invested $18M through its SPV Grand Mia Pte. Ltd. and existing investor Trip.com added $8M, at $9 a share against $4.96 in March 2025 — a post-money valuation of about $121.4M, more than double the previous $52.5M. The company says it will keep building the brand family, with the Prestige luxury resort line and Harmony Living Suites among planned additions.
Background
M Village is a Vietnamese co-living and hospitality company founded by Nguyen Hai Ninh, co-founder and former CEO of The Coffee House, and incorporated in Ho Chi Minh City in October 2020. Its serviced apartments serve short- and long-term stays, with workspace, food, wellness and community services layered around them; the first property opened in 2022.
The original bet was that a modern, branded alternative to Vietnam's informal rental market could win on experience and community rather than beds alone. That produced steady expansion: a $3.7M Series A, a $10M Series B from Trip.com in 2024, a rare VND100B unsecured bank credit line from OCB in 2025, and 53 locations nationwide within four years.
In May 2026 the company rebranded as Modern Village Lifestyle, recasting itself as a multi-brand hospitality ecosystem: M Village Hotel, Express by M Village and Savvy in cities, and Signature and Grand Signature in resorts, with more brands planned. In August 2026 it closed a new round of about $26M.
DealStreetAsia reported the round details, which Vietnamese business media picked up on 2026-08-24: Mizuho Asia Partners' SPV Grand Mia Pte. Ltd. put in $18M and Trip.com added $8M at $9 a share, up from $4.96 in March 2025, for a post-money valuation of about $121.4M — more than double the prior $52.5M. The capital extends the brand-family strategy rather than funding a single format.
What has to be true
- 53 operating locations across Vietnam after four years gave the round a growth story most regional hospitality startups lack (Bao Phap Luat and VietnamBiz, citing DealStreetAsia).
- Returning investor Trip.com, which led the 2024 Series B, plus new Japanese capital from Mizuho Asia Partners anchored the $26M round.
- A share price of $9 against $4.96 in March 2025 and a post-money valuation of about $121.4M versus $52.5M show the market rewarded the multi-brand pivot.
- Rebranding to Modern Village Lifestyle in May 2026 reframed apartments as one entry point into a stay ecosystem spanning hotels, express properties and resorts.
What can be applied
A category leader can still be capped by its category: M Village used strong growth and a higher-priced round to rebrand 53 co-living sites into a hotel-group story before the ceiling arrived.
Aftermath
As of 2026-08-24 Modern Village Lifestyle is Vietnam's highest-profile co-living-to-hospitality transition story: 53 operating locations, a $26M round at more than double the previous valuation, and a hotel brand family still under construction, with Prestige and Harmony Living Suites among planned additions. The open question is whether operating dozens of apartment sites converts into premium hotel and resort economics, where Trip.com's distribution and Mizuho's capital will be tested.
Sources
- M Village of ex-The Coffee House CEO Nguyen Hai Ninh successfully raises US$26 million
- Nguyen Hai Ninh's M Village raises US$26M from Japanese and Chinese investors
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