Vietnam is preparing to restrict its citizens from trading cryptocurrencies on overseas platforms, prompting a race among local companies to establish the country's first licensed cryptocurrency exchanges. Vietnam is one of the world's most active cryptocurrency markets.
A government resolution issued in February outlines a pilot program for a domestic digital asset exchange, which could launch as early as this month. This initiative is part of a broader effort to strengthen oversight of cryptocurrency transactions and capital flows.
A document from the Ministry of Finance dated March 12, reviewed this week, indicates that five companies have passed the initial qualification round.
These five companies include subsidiaries of three private Vietnamese banks—Techcombank, VPBank, and LPBank—as well as the brokerage firm VIX Securities and Sun Group, one of Vietnam's largest private conglomerates.
Sun Group and VPBank have confirmed submitting license applications. The other three companies did not respond to requests for comment.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Finance stated that relevant agencies are progressing with the matter but declined to comment on specific applicants.
**A Globally Active Market**
Vietnam has emerged as a highly active participant in the global cryptocurrency market. According to the Global Crypto Adoption Index released last year by blockchain data firm Chainalysis, Vietnam ranked fourth worldwide. The firm estimated that transaction volume involving Vietnamese traders exceeded $200 billion in the 12 months leading to June of last year.
As cryptocurrency adoption grows across the region, Vietnamese authorities have expressed increasing concern about the use of cryptocurrencies and stablecoins, warning they could heighten the risk of unregulated capital outflows.
The Ministry of Finance is drafting new regulations that would prohibit Vietnamese citizens from trading on overseas cryptocurrency platforms.
Vietnam maintains strict controls on cross-border capital transfers. With a corporate bond market that is small and underdeveloped, and a stock exchange still classified as a frontier market, many domestic savers have turned to investing in gold or real estate.
The domestic price of gold in Vietnam carries a premium of approximately 10% over the international benchmark, while the real estate market is prone to speculative bubbles, highlighting the limited investment options available to households.
Although Vietnam does not explicitly ban the possession of cryptocurrencies, digital assets are not recognized as legal tender or legitimate payment instruments in the country. Market participants note that, as a result, most Vietnamese traders currently use overseas centralized exchanges such as Binance, OKX, and Bybit.
Phan Duc Trung, Chairman of the Vietnam Blockchain and Digital Asset Association, stated that the successful establishment of local exchanges would help retain transaction fees within the country and support the development of Vietnam's digital financial services sector.
"This would not only increase state budget revenue but also promote the growth of the domestic digital economy," Trung said. However, he cautioned that the relevant legal framework remains incomplete, particularly in areas such as supervision, taxation, and risk management.