Abstract

As Vietnam continues to re'ne its socialist-oriented market economy, the role of public interest enterprises (PIEs) raises emerging legal challenges. However, the existing legal framework lacks a coherent theoretical foundation for de'ning “public interest goals,” provides no concrete evaluation criteria, and does not establish a comprehensive mechanism to reconcile public mandates with corporate governance requirements. By examining the theoretical foundations, current legal framework, and practical operation of PIEs in Vietnam, this article proposes a new approach to identifying public interest goals and recommends legal reforms based on a “dual-mission governance” model, with a view to achieving a more appropriate balance between public interest and business performance.

Keywords: Corporate governance, dual-mission governance, public interest enterprises, public interest goals, public service obligations.